This paper uses corporate tax return data to study private equity (PE) buyouts of private U.S. firms. PE firms disproportionately target two types of private companies – those with poor operating performance and those that have growth potential but are dependent on external financing and...

We examine the role private equity (PE) firms play in the resolution of financial distress using a sample of 2,151 firms that borrow in the leveraged loan market between 1997 and 2010. Controlling for leverage, PE-backed firms are no more likely to default than other leveraged loan borrowers....