Difference between Infrastructure and industrials?
This is probably a dumb question (sorry) but what's the difference between a team that focuses on infrastructure vs industrials?
Wouldn't there be strong overlap? What are some deals that would be mutually exclusive to industrials over infrastructure?
infrastructure are assets like toll roads, rail, airports etc while industrials are the processing of raw materials to finished materials to be used to construct infrastructure assets
It's a valid question and it can be confusing at times. I once worked on a toll road M&A deal where we had both the infrastructure financing group and industrials coverage (transportation vertical) on it.
Clients mutually exclusive to industrials would be major industrial corporates – automotive (Ford), chemicals (Dow DuPont), airlines, and stuff like homebuilding/packaging.
Meanwhile, in my experience infrastructure emphasizes covering infrastructure sponsors – think of it as an extension of the financial sponsors group, just focusing on infra funds. You'll cover both corporate and project-specific deals across power, energy, telecom (data centers) and core infra (airports, toll roads, etc.) Nonetheless you'll also cover any non-sponsor corporate M&A / financings that fall under the infrastructure banner.
Basically – infra coverage kind of overlaps with NatRes, industrials, financial sponsors, and TMT, but really focuses on the sponsor side of things.
Would also add that the definition of what is classically "infrastructure" has really broadened as people seek more yield and look for core ++ returns.
I.e a few years ago it would just be things like toll roads, airports, hospitals etc but now because of all the dry powder and desire for higher yields funds are venturing to more atypical assets with infrastructure like characteristics (long-term, stable, some type of contractual agreement, monopolistic characteristics etc). So this would include things like data centers, laundromats, short line rail, even school bus companies etc. So yes the overlap between the infrastructure group and other groups just gets larger as sponsors continue to deploy their capital in other infrastructure like areas. But I would say frequently infrastructure looks at things from the asset level vs company level so think like a portfolio of wind farms vs the construction company that builds them.
Have a friend who does this on the credit analyst side, also includes stadiums, which is kind of cool, estimating the revenue streams, etc.
Not sure the tie in with muni bonds, etc. if that's a path into that area, but that's also an interesting field, debt raises for muni. Right at the moment, yes, troubled area, but an MD I was personally friendly with spent her career here, and really enjoyed it. She traveled some cool places across our country. Yes, lucrative, challenging hours, etc.
WSO is often heavy "standard IB", so I like to mention other career opportunities just to spark ideas for younger professionals/students.
My favorite infrastructure asset, this is how we're going to rebuild our country
Voluptatem ut totam id vel. Pariatur libero maiores excepturi a. Eum vitae qui dolorem saepe architecto corrupti. Voluptate tempore aut eius itaque eum cupiditate consequatur. Quisquam aliquid dicta animi inventore.
Aut nisi recusandae quia accusantium. Alias autem consectetur excepturi quae voluptatem at.
See All Comments - 100% Free
WSO depends on everyone being able to pitch in when they know something. Unlock with your email and get bonus: 6 financial modeling lessons free ($199 value)
or Unlock with your social account...