Tuesday, May 15, 2012

Different Carlyle Co-founder Says UnitHolders Will Benefit

Bloomberg reported:

Carlyle Group LP, the private-equity firm that went public this month, said first-quarter profit fell 26 percent as performance fees declined from a year earlier. (CG), the private-equity firm that went public this month, said first-quarter profit fell 26 percent as performance fees declined from a year earlier.

Economic net income, a measure of profit excluding some costs, declined to $392 million from $533 million a year ago, Washington-based Carlyle said in a statement today. Performance fees fell 27 percent to $631.5 million from a year earlier, when Carlyle sold $1.8 billion of shares of China Pacific Insurance Group Co.

“Our central mission remains the same as it has for 25 years -- investing wisely and creating value for our limited partners,” William E. Conway, the firm’s co-chief executive officer, said in the statement. “In doing so, our new partners -- our public unitholders -- will benefit.”
It's the rising tide will lift all PEU investors line.  The problem arises from unit holders being heavily anchored, given their inability to participate in nearly $1 billion in cash tax savings.  Unit holders paid a $1 premium to Carlyle's after hours stock price. 

So far, it's a negative benefit, the exact opposite promised by Carlyle co-founder David Rubenstein. Now fellow co-founder William Conway sounds the refrain.  Do public unitholders need to buy in at ever deepening discount prices to benefit?