Private Equity · Profile from Private Equity Research Companion
Hellman & Friedman (H&F)
San Francisco-based large-cap private-equity firm, founded 1984. Known for a single-strategy, highly concentrated portfolio, a small partnership, unusually long holds of "franchise" businesses, and top-tier long-run returns. Sectors: software and internet, financial services and insurance, healthcare, business and information services, consumer, and media/marketing.
15 deals and moves analysed
Each one gets a full strategy file in the companion: context, the decision, the financing, what happened, and the lesson.
1985
Levi Strauss
Family-Led Take-Private / LBO
1995
Eller Media
Buyout / Platform Roll-up
1996
Young and Rubicam
Leveraged Recapitalisation / Minority-Control Investment
2005
DoubleClick
Take-Private, Break-up & Strategic Sale
2007
Kronos
Take-Private, Then Recapitalisations and Merger into UKG
2008
Getty Images
Take-Private
2008
Goodman Global
Take-Private / Secondary Buyout
2011
PPD
Take-Private, Recap, IPO and Strategic Sale
2013
Hub International
Secondary Buyout & Insurance-Brokerage Roll-up
2015
Verisure
Secondary Buyout of a Subscription Platform
2016
MultiPlan
Secondary Buyout, SPAC Exit and Collapse
2017
Allfunds
Secondary Buyout, IPO and Strategic Sale
2019
Ultimate Software
Take-Private and Merger with Kronos to Form UKG
2021
Medline
Majority Buyout of a Family Company / Mega-LBO
2022
Zendesk
Take-Private Financed with Private Credit