Enterprising Investor
Practical analysis for investment professionals

Private Equity


Private Equity: In Essence, Plunder?

To understand what private equity is at its worst is a call to action, personally and professionally.

Times Change: The Era of the Private Equity Denominator Effect

How can investors address the denominator effect in private equities?

Mergers and Acquisitions in 2024: Headwinds to Tailwinds?

With wide spreads, an improved playbook for assessing deal risk, and the potential for more M&A activity to materialize, 2024 could be a strong year for merger arbitrage performance. 

The 60/40 Portfolio Needs an Alts Infusion

How can investors supplement the traditional 60/40 stock/bond portfolio with allocations to alternatives?

Book Review: Plunder

Brendan Ballou presents a meta-analysis of the worst of private equity investment practices, thus compelling investors to take a deeper look into their illiquid private equity commitments.

Book Review: These Are the Plunderers

The PE playbook is always the same: Borrow money to acquire the firm, saddle it with debt, and extract exorbitant management fees.

Private Capital: Lessons from the Conglomerate Era

With their sprawling empires, the largest alternative asset managers have adopted strategies that borrow extensively from the octopus-like corporate conglomerate business model.

Distress Investing: A Tale of Two Case Studies

With recession forecasted in many economies this year or next, distressed situations will be an important source of deals for prospective investors.

Agency Capitalism in Private Markets: Who Watches the Agents?

With the PE model’s high profitability, the industry’s ultimate development stage will inevitably feature leveraged buyouts of the fund managers themselves,