Investing by private equity firms fell in the second quarter, with the number of private equity transactions dropping 12% — to 1,279 — from the end of the first quarter and 20% from the year-earlier period, PitchBook data released Thursday said.
Capital invested stood at $191.6 billion — down 10% from the first quarter and down 28.3% from the second quarter of 2014. It's the lowest capital investment since the third quarter of 2012.
The most active firms in terms of number of deals in the second quarter were ABRY Partners, with 22 deals; KKR, with 19; and Hellman & Friedman and Blackstone Group, with 13 transactions each.
Private equity firms closed 94 funds and raised a total of $43.8 billion in the second quarter. That fund number is up 9% from the first quarter but down 21% from the second quarter of 2014, while the dollar amount was down 33% from the first quarter and down 52% from the second quarter.
The data also said 89.5% of private equity funds that closed in the second quarter hit or exceeded their fundraising targets.