Value Creation in Private Equity: Evidence from the Italian Food & Beverage Sector - The Case of La Doria

This thesis examines the mechanisms through which private equity can create value in mature industrial businesses, focusing on the Italian food and beverage sector and Investindustrial’s 2022 acquisition of La Doria. It distinguishes changes in operating performance from returns to equity investors and considers how acquisitions, financing and valuation interact within a buy-and-build strategy. The analysis combines a review of private equity literature and sector characteristics with an in-depth case study. Consolidated financial statements for FY2016–FY2025 are restated on an invested-capital basis to compare performance before and after the buyout. Public transaction disclosures inform a reconstructed leveraged buyout model, with projections from FY2026 onwards, return attribution and sensitivity analysis across alternative exit multiples and dates. Reported post-buyout indicators show higher average profitability and lower working capital intensity. However, cyclical conditions, changes in the consolidation perimeter and financing arrangements prevent these improvements from being attributed exclusively to sponsor intervention. Under a standalone La Doria scenario assuming an exit at the end of 2029 at the unchanged entry multiple of approximately 6.9x EBITDA, the model generates a prospective equity IRR of 19.3% and a MOIC of 3.4x. EBITDA growth supports the modelled return, while acquisition financing and shareholder distributions help explain why nominal debt does not decline. The case illustrates how earnings growth and acquisitions can support equity returns even when nominal debt increases. The eventual outcome remains dependent on acquisition integration, sustainable cash generation and exit valuation.