Middle Market Weekly Outlook

Good morning, all. There are tremors of change in the healthcare industry. On the investing side, it seems that PE firms are increasingly looking at earlier stage healthcare opportunities. As the WSJ reports, “Global pressure to contain health-care spending for an aging population and the industry’s non-cyclical growth rate have spurred innovation in the sector, providing new investment opportunities that may disrupt the current mode of care delivery and theoretically produce returns.”

PE’s shift in focus coincides with an exodus of healthcare investment bankers from buldge bracket to boutique shops. The appeal of taking home large percentages of fees and good experience with growing biotech companies is very attractive to many first movers.

In other news, Steve Schwarzman says Blackstone is just like Apple.

Transactions:

• KPMG buys Beacon Partners
• Avant strikes $400 million deal with KKR
• Post Oak Energy Capital commits $150 million to PetroEdge Energy
• Roar in talks to buy Pet Supermarket
•  LLR Partners invests in WennSoft
• Genstar Capital invests in Boyd Corp
• Insignia Capital Group buys Metanexgen
• Energy Capital Partners invests in Next Wave Energy Partners
• H.I.G. Capital sells Dent Wizard International
• Monroe Capital supports recap of Little River Healthcare
• Ex-NGP execs form Citrine Energy Capital Management
• Praesidian Capital invests in Aquasana
• Trinity Hunt Partners buys majority stake in America’s Auto Auction
• Victory Park Capital invests in Applied Data Finance

Events:

• Thursday: SBIA’s Western Private Equity Conference

Opinions:

• Minimizing the pain of raising capital for PE firms
• Sorry small business: Middle market companies create most net new jobs
• PE goes earlier stage in healthcare investing
• Major investment banks are seeing healthcare talent flee to boutique banks
• Cogent Partners co-founder launches PE ‘restructuring’ shop
• Private equity is changing, but still a man’s world
• The world’s biggest PE firms are fighting over Shell’s scraps
• Merger boom lifts banks despite loan troubles
• Blackstone’s deal with G.E. highlights its real estate holdings
• Defined contribution pensions gain access to private equity
• Blackstone EMEA energy chief: Expect more deals
• Get ready for a major boom in technology mergers
• Flush with cash, PE investors look for next big fund opportunity
• Strong dollar, low oil price: Wave of corporate mergers expected to get bigger
• 5 big mergers we could see soon
• Private equity’s returns are tempered by its risks
• Middle market healthcare execs are optimistic for 2015
• Private equity vs. the strategic acquirer
• Mergers still a trend in legal industry
• Why these realtors are staying away from PE
• Moving from private equity to public company

This week in history… The Coca-Cola Company announced it was changing its secret formula. Consumers were not happy (1985).