A Primer on Private Equity at Work

Targets of private equity usually have faster job growth than other companies before they are taken over. On average they also have higher rates of profitability. The claim that private equity mostly helps struggling companies is not borne out by the facts. Moreover, the investors who provide private equity firms with the capital typically make less money than if they had invested in a stock market index. Here is a much-needed primer on what private equity firms do.