First year analyst experience - should I leave?
Hope all is well. I am a first year analyst at a NYC BB Covering Energy (which is dope). So far, I have worked on absolutely no M&A deals, like at all. I have fully built and ran an M&A model from scratch twice and a quick LBO a few different times. I have issued a shitload of bonds and equity at insane yields or discounts. Apart from that, everything else has been shitty comp work, refreshing old decks, and putting together random pitches for god knows what reason. Is this normal? Should I leave? What is everybody else’s experience looking like right now? Are people on a lot of interesting sell-sides? Am I missing out and should leave? Any thoughts would be greatly appreciated!
First year at another BB, 0 m&a 2 levfin deals. That’s all, just that and pitches...
I just left an energy group for a different industry coverage group. I would suggest you think about doing the same. Not much M&A to get done out there and majority of fees for energy companies these days are bond deals. My experience was similar to yours. I would say though not that uncommon for a 1st year in coverage to have no M&A mandates. In my experience 2nd and 3rd years would gobble up lots of those deals leaving the first years with pitches, bond deals and comps work. Just how it goes. Anyways I would lateral out of energy. Also covering energy out of NYC? Not necessarily a recipe for success. Most other good energy shops would get a good laugh at that since pretty much everyone has moved to Houston at this point
P&U as opposed to oil and gas. Thanks for your thoughts about analyst experience - makes me feel good to know that I’m not on a ton of m&a.
That makes much more sense. Ignore the comments around O&G then. But the comments around first years still holds true (at least at my bank). Good luck
You’ve gotten modeling experience as a 1st year during COVID with everyone working from home. You’re complaining about “working on bond deals” and “doing shitty comp work” - you do realize 1) not every deal you work on is a benchmark deal, right? It’s important to build the skills to do vanilla work too. 2) shitty comp work? The fuck do you expect to be working on? Leading bake offs as a 1st year analyst?
I’ll give you the benefit of the doubt that you’re not an entitled twat, so I’ll say the answer is 1 of 2 things can or a mix of both 1) you either hate banking and this is the wrong business or 2) your expectations for what ANY first year does are VERY mis-aligned with reality
From asking my friends from college, ALL have been on at least one sell-side with most having one sell side completed and announced (now probably closed). I have zero M&A deals to talk about and spend 90% of my time doing pitches, a drastic difference to what the other BB first year Analysts that I am in contact with are working on.
And? No offense, you sound like "well my buddy has a rolex so I want a rolex, I don't want to wait, I want it now!!!" If you were at some no name bank, then sure, fair point consider lateraling. You are at a BULGE BRACKET working in INVESTMENT BANKING - covering a super interesting sector given the current climate (pun intended). You will get looks if you were an IB analyst and delivered coffees 24/7 for your job (half kidding) because of the name brand. You WILL get deal experience. In the meantime, become in expert in all the "bullshit" - because once you get on a hot live deal, you'll still have to do some "bullshit" and if you're not sharp and quick doing that "bullshit" both your work product and sleep will suffer immensely. Patience, dude, patience.
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