Piper was just sold to a Thai/Brunei/Singapore Company

Brunei is not Malaysia.

I hope Clay's job stays secure.

Tim

It's pretty common for a private equity firm to buy a company, hold it for 3 - 6 years, then resell it (or take it public). They usually don't hold the companies for very long because the investors want to get their returns.

Having formerly worked for a portfolio company, I'd say there are some positives to being owned by a PE firm (they usually have solid management that can help a growing company) and some negatives (to maximize returns they are disinclined to put much money into product development).

I read the press release last night and have no idea what it all means. In my very narrow view of the business world, it bugs me to see viable companies with significant history gobbled up by a bigger company just because they can, like Piper has been several times already. Seems like nothing good ever comes from it and Piper has never been the same since the first time back in the day. Same can be said for Douglas and a myriad other aircraft companies. On the other hand, look at all the smaller companies that were born to fill the gap when Piper left the field. Like I said, I don't know squat about biddness -- this could be a good thing for all I know.