Värdedrivare i buyout-investeringar av noterade private equity-bolag - En empirisk studie av 15 svenska buyout-investeringar 1998-2012

Sammanfattning: Sweden is a world leader in listed private equity and ranked fifth in the world in market capitalization. The sector is attracting increasing interest from the investment community. However, the private equity industry in Sweden has historically poor reputation and is criticized for creating value through high leverage, multiple riding and severe cuts. This study analyzes value creation drivers in buyouts from the perspective of the private equity firm using a dataset of 15 realized buyouts by private equity firms listed on NASDAQ OMX Nordic Stockholm. The methodology used separates the value contribution of leverage on the private equity firm's return from internal operational improvements and external variations in transaction multiples. The results of the empirical analysis show that almost half of the private equity firm's return can be attributed to the use of leverage, whereas the remainder is due to EBITDA growth, cumulated FCF generation and multiple expansion. The analysis shows that sales growth through add-on acquisitions, financed by new debt and internal FCF generation, is the main underlying value creation driver. The results provide key insights into the listed private equity business model.