NB Private Equity Partners H2 Earnings Call Highlights

Key Points

• NBPE delivered a 5% NAV total return and a 7.5% share price total return for the year ended Dec. 31, 2025, realizing about $180 million (≈14% of opening NAV) at an average uplift of ~17% and returning roughly $102 million to shareholders via dividends and buybacks (≈8% of opening NAV; ~11% since start of 2025).
• The company has increased its investment level to about 110% (board target 105–110%), making five new investments totalling ~ $78–79 million since year-end, while reporting $302 million of liquidity at year-end and ~$196 million available as of March 31; the portfolio holds ~$1.1 billion of direct investments, ~80% U.S.-weighted, with the top 30 positions representing ~79% of fair value.
• Market conditions cooled in Q1 2026—cited drivers include AI-related software uncertainty and geopolitical risks—but remained “very functional” with improving activity in April; portfolio fundamentals are steady with valuations around ~15x and LTM revenue and EBITDA growth of ~9.2% and ~9.7%, respectively.

NB Private Equity Partners LON: NBPE reported a net asset value (NAV) total return of 5% for the year ended December 31, 2025, alongside a 7.5% share price total return, management said on the company’s results call. The update also included commentary on portfolio activity through the end of March, when NBPE released its monthly NAV announcement.

2025 results: NAV growth, realizations, and capital returns

In opening remarks, management highlighted $180 million of realizations during 2025, representing about 14% of opening portfolio NAV. The company said realizations were “very much kind of Q4 weighted,” with about $78 million in the fourth quarter and about $51 million in the first quarter.

Management said those realizations were achieved at an average uplift of about 17% and “three-quarters” were “prior to 2.8x multiple of invested capital.” The company also said co-investment exits increased 57% from 2024.

On capital allocation, management said NBPE returned about $102 million to investors during 2025 via dividends and buybacks, representing about 8% of opening portfolio NAV. Management added that since the beginning of 2025, the company has returned “near 11%” of portfolio NAV to investors through its dividend and buyback program.

Investment level rises back to target range

Management said the portfolio was 100% invested at year-end 2025, with available liquidity of $302 million at that time. By the time of the call, the investment level had increased to about 110%, consistent with the board’s stated intention at the November Capital Markets Day to move investment levels back toward a 105% to 110% target range.

Management said NBPE made five new investments totaling about $78 million since the end of 2025, with “one new investment of $11 million pending,” bringing total new investments to roughly $79 million over the last couple of months.

Discussing the portfolio structure, management described approximately $1.1 billion of direct investments, with 94% in private investments. The portfolio included 72 direct deals across 48 different managers, with an average holding period of about 5.8 years. Management also noted that the top 30 positions represented about 79% of portfolio fair value, and geographic exposure remained heavily U.S.-weighted, with “eighty percent in the U.S.” and 22% in Europe.

Market backdrop: slower Q1 activity, functional conditions in April

Paul Daggett, Managing Director, said private equity markets in the first quarter of 2026 were slower than the pace seen in the fourth quarter of 2025, citing macro uncertainty and specific concerns that affected activity. Daggett pointed to “concerns around artificial intelligence impact on software” and “the war in Iran and more broadly the political landscape” as factors that “most definitely had an effect on the deal environment in the first quarter.”

Daggett said the slowdown was most notable in February and March, though he added that markets “have remained very functional,” with “pretty good activity so far in April.”

On broader deal activity, he said 2025 was “the second biggest ever” on the chart shown during the presentation, while the 2026 run rate was “a little bit lower.” Exit activity in Q1 was described as still healthy on a run-rate basis, though Daggett said the pace “was slowing as the quarter went along,” with a rebound “somewhat in Q2.”

On valuation multiples, Daggett said U.S. EV/EBITDA multiples on new private equity deals came down slightly during the quarter, attributing much of the change to reduced software activity rather than a broad-based reset. He said other sectors remained competitive and “very similar to what we saw in 2024 and 2025,” and that Europe remained “about the same as where it was in 2025.” He added that debt remained available and described the market as “very functional and competitive.”

Portfolio performance: steady growth, top holdings driving uplift

Management said the private portfolio was up 4% in foreign exchange terms in 2025, while the public portfolio—which has declined to about 6% of the portfolio due primarily to realizations—showed a slight decline during the year.

Daggett said the largest holdings continued to drive performance, pointing to a 16% uplift in the top 10 companies. He also cited continued underlying operating performance, with approximately 9% to 10% revenue and EBITDA growth across the portfolio. Management separately referenced last-twelve-month (LTM) revenue growth of 9.2% and 9.7% LTM EBITDA growth, along with a 3.9% appreciation excluding foreign exchange in private investments.

On valuation, Daggett said the portfolio’s valuation metric was about 15x and had decreased from 17.4x in 2021, stabilizing “over the last couple of years.” He also said leverage and valuation metrics had been broadly stable in more recent periods.

Daggett also highlighted M&A as a contributor to value creation across several companies, contrasting more transformative acquisition strategies with more systematic “buy and integrate” programs among industrial distribution businesses.

New investments and realizations: portfolio “refresh” and a slower start to 2026

Management framed recent investment activity as part of a broader effort to “refresh” the portfolio, given the average holding period of about 5.8 years. Daggett said NBPE had prioritized balance sheet strength since 2021, with investment levels declining to about 100% during uncertain periods, but had since increased investment activity while continuing buybacks.

He said that since the Capital Markets Day, four new investments had closed, one more was in process, and one closed just before the event—six new investments in total—with the investment level now at 110% and “almost $200 million of liquidity available for the portfolio.” Daggett added that artificial intelligence was a factor in four of the investments, either as a business driver or part of an operational improvement thesis.

Discussing investments closed in 2026 to date, Daggett identified three disclosed names and two undisclosed investments due to confidentiality provisions. He described the undisclosed investments as “more growth-focused” and “both AI-themed,” with position sizes of $10 million and $14 million.

• Infra Group: Described as an infrastructure services-focused investment and a “mid-life investment,” meaning NBPE invested after the lead sponsor had owned the company for some time. Daggett said it was “already off to a positive valuation start.”
• Conservice: A business services provider focused on utility management and bill payments processing, serving multi-tenant landlords through outsourcing.
• Ryan: A business services provider focused on managing tax savings across state and local taxes for U.S. businesses; Daggett said M&A could contribute to future growth.

Daggett also provided an update on the recent investment cohort, saying four investments made in 2024 and Infra Group in 2025 had generated a 1.4x gross multiple of invested capital and a 20% gross internal rate of return (IRR) to date, alongside “very strong revenue and EBITDA growth.”

On realizations, Daggett reiterated that 2025 was the largest year for co-investment realizations since 2021, with activity “second half loaded,” especially in the fourth quarter. He noted that quarterly realizations can be “lumpy” and sensitive to macro events, referencing reduced activity in Q2 2025 following “Liberation Day.”

So far in 2026, Daggett said realizations have been lower at about $10 million, which he linked to a slower market. Still, he said management continues to view NBPE as holding “a number of companies positioned for exits when the market is in the right place.”

In concluding comments on liquidity and capital allocation, management said the drawn credit facility stood at $120 million, with $196 million of available liquidity as of March 31. Management also said that since inception, NBPE has returned or declared about $556 million to investors through dividends and share buybacks, including $80 million of shares repurchased under a $120 million buyback program announced since February 2025.

Management said it plans to continue balancing new investments with returning capital to shareholders, emphasizing that NBPE’s model provides flexibility in pacing investments while maintaining balance sheet strength.

About NB Private Equity Partners LON: NBPE

NB Private Equity Partners (NBPE) is a London listed FTSE-250 investment company which invests directly in private companies alongside some of the world's leading private equity managers. Managed by Neuberger Berman, a leading private markets investor, NBPE leverages the strength of Neuberger Berman's platform, relationships, deal flow and expertise to access the most attractive investment opportunities, providing shareholders with access to a portfolio of direct investments diversified by manager, sector, geography and size.

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