Company type | Private |
---|---|
Industry | Private equity |
Founded | 1958 |
Headquarters | Washington, DC, United States |
Products | Leveraged buyout, Mezzanine capital |
Revenue | US$-258 Million (FY 2009) [1] |
US$-521 Million (FY 2009) [1] | |
Total assets | US$2.67 Billion (FY 2009) [2] |
Total equity | US$1.20 Billion (FY 2009) [2] |
Number of employees | 150 |
Parent | Ares Capital Corp. |
Website | www.alliedcapital.com |
Allied Capital was a private equity investment firm and mezzanine capital lender providing debt and equity capital for leveraged buyouts, acquisitions and restructurings of established businesses. Allied operated as a Business Development Company, a form of publicly traded private equity company, and was among the largest BDCs. The firm was headquartered in Washington, DC with offices in New York City.
Allied invested primarily in middle-market companies in the business services, financial services, consumer products industrial, health care, retail and energy sectors.
The company was purchased by Ares Capital in 2010. [3]
Allied Capital Corporation was founded in 1958 and completed its first public offering of stock in 1960 on the OTC.[ citation needed ]
In February 1997, Chairman and CEO David Gladstone resigned. [4]
In 2001, Allied was listed on the New York Stock Exchange. Allied's stock was repeatedly noted for a high dividend yield. [5]
Between 2002 and 2008, David Einhorn, the manager of Greenlight Capital, a hedge fund engaged in heavy short selling of Allied's stock as he tried to demonstrate that the company's valuation of its illiquid securities was inflated. This activity led to a highly publicized feud between Einhorn and the company. [6]
As early as 2003, Allied complained publicly about Einhorn's activities. [7] Einhorn's activities in relation to Allied were also examined by the SEC to determine whether his statements about the company were intended to manipulate its stock price. [8]
In 2004, Allied came under scrutiny. [9] [10]
In June 2007, the S.E.C. found that Allied broke securities laws relating to the accounting and valuation of illiquid securities it held. However, it did not issue any fines or penalties, and Allied settled without admitting or denying the allegations. [8] [11]
In 2008, Einhorn authored "Fooling Some of the people All of the Time," [12] describing his concerns about the company's accounting practices and his encounters with the company over those years. [13] In his book, Einhorn explains how he uncovers the fact that Allied Capital is basically run as a ponzi scheme and in order to keep the appearances of a valid investment proposition, Allied Capital is forced to cook the books by constantly overpricing its loans and the value of its subsidiaries. [14]
In 2008, Allied came under wider criticism for aggressive accounting policies. [8]
As the credit markets began to slow in 2007, Allied appeared to be unaffected.[ citation needed ] In January 2008, Allied completed a structured secondary transaction with Goldman Sachs. [15] Goldman and Allied created AGILE Fund I, LLC, a new special purpose vehicle to acquire $170 million of private equity and mezzanine capital interests from Allied Capital, representing 13.7% of Allied's equity portfolio. Goldman also agreed to invest $125 million in future investment vehicles managed by Allied. Allied also sold a portfolio of venture capital and private equity fund interests. [16]
On September 30, 2008, Allied Capital shares fell by more than half their value as Ciena Capital, one of its portfolio companies, filed for bankruptcy. [17] [18]
In late 2009, Allied agreed to be purchased by Ares Capital. [19] Prospect Capital submitted a competing bid in early 2010, but was rejected by Allied management. The sale to Ares was approved by shareholders on March 26, 2010, [3] and was finalized on April 1 with Allied closing for the last time at $5 a share.
Investment banking pertains to certain activities of a financial services company or a corporate division that engages in providing advisory-based services on financial transactions for clients, such as institutional investors, corporations, and governments. Traditionally associated with corporate finance, such a bank might assist in raising financial capital by underwriting or acting as the client's agent in the issuance of debt or equity securities. An investment bank may also assist companies involved in mergers and acquisitions (M&A) and provide ancillary services such as market making, trading of derivatives and equity securities, FICC services or research. Most investment banks maintain prime brokerage and asset management departments in conjunction with their investment research businesses. As an industry, it is broken up into the Bulge Bracket, Middle Market, and boutique market.
In the field of finance, private equity (PE) is capital stock in a private company that does not offer stock to the general public. Private equity is offered instead to specialized investment funds and limited partnerships that take an active role in the management and structuring of the companies. In casual usage, "private equity" can refer to these investment firms rather than the companies that they invest in.
The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. is an American multinational investment bank and financial services company. Founded in 1869, Goldman Sachs is headquartered in Lower Manhattan in New York City, with regional headquarters in many international financial centers. Goldman Sachs is the second largest investment bank in the world by revenue and is ranked 55th on the Fortune 500 list of the largest United States corporations by total revenue. In Forbes Global 2000 2023, Goldman Sachs ranked 34th. It is considered a systemically important financial institution by the Financial Stability Board.
A private investment in public equity, often called a PIPE deal, involves the selling of publicly traded common shares or some form of preferred stock or convertible security to private investors. It is an allocation of shares in a public company not through a public offering in a stock exchange. PIPE deals are part of the primary market. In the U.S., a PIPE offering may be registered with the Securities and Exchange Commission on a registration statement or may be completed as an unregistered private placement.
Bain Capital, LP is an American private investment firm based in Boston, Massachusetts. It specializes in private equity, venture capital, credit, public equity, impact investing, life sciences, crypto, tech opportunities, partnership opportunities, special situations, and real estate. Bain Capital invests across a range of industry sectors and geographic regions. The firm was founded in 1984 by partners from the consulting firm Bain & Company. The company is headquartered at 200 Clarendon Street in Boston with 22 offices in North America, Europe, Asia, and Australia.
Oaktree Capital Management, Inc. is an American global asset management firm specializing in alternative investment strategies. As of March 31, 2023, the company managed $172 billion for its clientele.
An exchange fund, also known as a swap fund, is an investment vehicle that allows investors with large stock positions to pool their stocks into a single fund, diversifying their holdings without triggering a taxable event. Given its dependence on the IRS Tax Code, it is a mechanism specific to the U.S., first introduced as early as 1954 with the passage of 26 U.S. Code § 721 though the practice traces back to the 1930s through other tax provisions.
In finance, the private-equity secondary market refers to the buying and selling of pre-existing investor commitments to private-equity and other alternative investment funds. Given the absence of established trading markets for these interests, the transfer of interests in private-equity funds as well as hedge funds can be more complex and labor-intensive.
David M. Einhorn is an American investor, hedge fund manager, and amateur poker player. He is the founder and president of Greenlight Capital, a "long-short value-oriented hedge fund".
Equity Residential is a United States-based publicly traded real estate investment trust that invests in apartments.
Apollo Global Management, Inc. is an American asset management firm that primarily invests in alternative assets. As of 2022, the company had $548 billion of assets under management, including $392 billion invested in credit, including mezzanine capital, hedge funds, non-performing loans, and collateralized loan obligations, $99 billion invested in private equity, and $46.2 billion invested in real assets, which includes real estate and infrastructure. The company invests money on behalf of pension funds, financial endowments, and sovereign wealth funds, as well as other institutional and individual investors.
The history of private equity, venture capital, and the development of these asset classes has occurred through a series of boom-and-bust cycles since the middle of the 20th century. Within the broader private equity industry, two distinct sub-industries, leveraged buyouts and venture capital experienced growth along parallel, although interrelated tracks.
Private equity in the 1990s relates to one of the major periods in the history of private equity and venture capital. Within the broader private equity industry, two distinct sub-industries, leveraged buyouts and venture capital, experienced growth along parallel although interrelated tracks.
Private equity in the 2000s represents one of the major growth periods in the history of private equity and venture capital. Within the broader private equity industry, two distinct sub-industries, leveraged buyouts and venture capital expanded along parallel and interrelated tracks.
Publicly traded private equity refers to an investment firm or investment vehicle, which makes investments conforming to one of the various private equity strategies, and is listed on a public stock exchange.
Ares Management Corporation is a global alternative investment manager operating in the credit, private equity and real estate markets. The company was founded in 1997 with additional offices across North America, Europe, and Asia.
Magnetar Capital is a hedge fund based in Evanston, Illinois. The firm was founded in 2005 and invests in fixed-income, energy, quantitative, and event-driven strategies. The firm was actively involved in the collateralized debt obligation (CDO) market during the 2006–2007 period. In some articles critical of Magnetar Capital, the firm's arbitrage strategy for CDOs is described as the "Magnetar trade".
Paulson & Co., Inc. is a family office based in New York City. Previously, it was a hedge fund established by John Paulson in 1994. Specializing in "global mergers, event arbitrage, and credit strategies", the firm had a relatively low profile on Wall Street until its hugely successful bet against the subprime mortgage market in 2007. At one time the company had offices in London and Dublin.
Golub Capital is a credit asset manager based in the United States with over $60 billion of capital under management. The firm has primary business lines in middle market lending, late stage lending, and broadly syndicated loans. The firm is also affiliated with Golub Capital BDC, Inc., a business development company that trades on the NASDAQ under the stock ticker symbol, GBDC. Golub Capital is one of the largest non-bank middle market lenders and providers of senior debt.
American Capital, Ltd. was a publicly traded private equity and global asset management firm, trading on NASDAQ under the symbol “ACAS” from 1997 to 2017 and a component of the S&P 500 Index from 2007 to 2009. American Capital was sold to Ares Management in 2017 at a sale price that totaled $4.1 billion. For those investors who bought American Capital stock in its August 29, 1997 IPO, and held their shares through the sale of American Capital on January 3, 2017, they received a 14% compounded annual return including dividends.