What determines leverage in leveraged buyouts? : A study of debt levels in European LBOs

Sammanfattning: This paper examines the main drivers of leverage levels in private equity-sponsored leveraged buyouts (LBOs). In order to find out what drives LBO leverage, we analyse deal financing of 71 European LBO deals completed between 2005 and 2015. By conducting univariate t-test and multiple regression analysis, we analyse the predictive power of a number of classical capital structure determinants (i.e. firm-specific factors) on levels of debt financing in LBOs. In addition, the state of the credit market is considered as a potential determinant of LBO leverage. We find that credit market conditions have a significant effect on levels of debt financing in LBOs and suggest that the market timing theory can explain LBO leverage better than classical leverage determinants, i.e. firm specific factors derived from classical capital structure theories. The results also indicate a negative relationship between target firms’ tax rate and LBO leverage. We also find that target firms’ free cash flow prior to buyout has no significant impact on leverage in LBOs, something that contradicts much previous research.