Private Equity Exits Report: Q2 2023
Private equity exit activity increased +74% QoQ, ending seven consecutive quarters of declining activity.
What's Included
Global Exit Trends
- Global Exit Activity
- Value of Global Exits
- Average Global Exit Size
- YoY Change in Global Exit Size
Regional Exit Trends
- Exit Activity by Region
- Value of Exits by Region
- Average Exit Size by Region
- YoY Change in Exit Size by Region
Sector Exit Trends
- Exit Activity by Sector
- Value of Exits by Sector
- Average Exit Size by Sector
- YoY Change in Exit Size by Sector
Key Findings
Increase in Capital Deployment Over Exits: In Q2 2023, private equity firms put $195.1 billion into new buyouts while exiting only $91.4 billion worth of portfolio positions. This marked trend indicates that firms are investing capital at a faster rate than they are exiting although sponsor-backed exits were up +74% QoQ giving firms a glimmer of hope of exiting long-held positions.
Geographical Disparity in Exit Activity: Western Europe is showing a faster recovery in exit activity compared to North America. For example, exit activity was up 170% QoQ in Western Europe in Q2, versus North America where it was up only 30% QoQ. Interestingly, Q2 2023 was the first time in over 10 years that Western Europe produced more private equity exits than North America.
Decline in Average Exit Sizes: The average exit size globally in Q2 2023 was $270 million, down 38% YoY, marking the steepest decline since early 2021. This decline was even more pronounced in certain sectors, with Healthcare seeing the largest drop of 66% YoY.
Sector Trends with Emphasis on Technology and Consumer: Of the $91.4 billion in PE dollars that exited in Q2 2023, 24% came from the Consumer sector and 20% from Technology. Technology continued its streak of being one of the three largest sectors for PE dollars, despite a noticeable drop in average exit sizes, potentially due to smaller but more frequent deals in the technology sector.
