Private Equity News & Analysis

Performance Watch: How Carlyle’s PE vehicles fared in Q3 2020

The firm’s corporate private equity funds are examined in the latest instalment of PEI's Performance Watch series.

-

As global markets recover from the coronavirus pandemic at their own pace, the latest quarterly reporting from private equity’s listed giants sheds new light on how the asset class fared during the crisis.

Here, we look at Carlyle Group’s private equity funds in the return of Private Equity International’s Performance Watch, which compares the firm’s Q3 2020 figures with those from the previous three quarters.

Carlyle Asia Partners IV, a $3.9 billion 2014 vintage, appreciated 17 percent for the quarter and is up 28 percent for the year to date, per its latest earnings. Carlyle Partners VI, a $13 billion 2014 vintage, gained 4 percent in the period and is also up 28 percent YTD.

The firm deployed $1.5 billion into private equity in Q3 2020, with notable deals including US disinfection tools company Victory Innovations via Carlyle Partners VII, an $18.5 billion 2018 vintage, and Chinese drug development company Shenzhen Salubris Pharmaceuticals from Carlyle Asia Partners V.

In a September interview with PEI, the firm’s head of impact, Megan Starr, said a disaster scenario workshop several years ago helped Carlyle to weather the metaphorical storm of covid-19.

“What we’re seeing [through covid-19] is the world can change on a dime, and it can change during your hold period. If you’re an illiquid investor, that could have significant implications,” she said.

“We’re focused on how we internally build the competencies, agility and skill set to be forward thinking, and how we instill that in our portfolio companies. None of us knows what the future will bring, but we know if our management teams are agile and forward thinking and quick on their feet, thinking about where the world’s going, they’ll be much better prepared to weather these potential shocks.”

The interactive charts below depict seven of the firm’s private equity fund families based on its two previous quarterly earnings reports. The bubbles are sized proportionately to the size of the fund – toggle between the tabs to see how their performance differed between quarters.