Wanted to start a discussion and get some opinions on the current state of banks/boutiques across Oil and Gas/Energy, especially since DB recently closed down its Houston office. I've heard that, as far as the BBs go, Barclays and Citi are considered some of the best for O&G, over GS/MS.
EBs like Evercore are quite strong in this space, apparently, and Jefferies/TPH are very strong in MM.
Anyone have any insight on what the different groups are like? Curious to know about the different cultures, deal flow, pay, etc. Hoping to recruit for a post-MBA Assoc role starting this Fall.
In the energy space, Jefferies is far from MM. They did like a ~7.5bn deal in September. CS is also up there in dealflow alongside Barclays and Citi. In terms of pay, I’d say TPH, Jefferies, and Evercore will pay the most. Prestige not sure. In terms of culture for juniors, TPH, RBC, Evercore, UBS, and Simmons seem to enjoy their time spent.
Would rank the BBs as such: 1a: Citi/Barclays 1b: GS/MS
You honestly can't go wrong with any of those places from deal flow perspective. Culturally, they're certainly different.
Edit: Would also through CS in there somewhere as well, depending on what you're looking for. They've been known to curb stomp the competition in O&G ECM, but I'm not sure about how strong M&A advisory deal flow it.
If you are interested in working sweatshop analyst hours (or worse) in exchange for a ton of deal experience and unreal comp (caveated, as that will likely come with a clawback structure), Jefferies should be number one on your list. I believe your chances of breaking in will be tougher there as there seems to be somewhat of an innate bias to recruiting A-to-A (whether that's internally or from other top energy groups). You should tread with caution, as earning the "respect" of analysts and fellow associates as a post-MBA hire at groups like this will not be a straightforward task and could prove challenging if you aren't able to pick things up very quickly.
If you want a slightly more "reasonable" work-life balance while getting a well-rounded experience as an MBA Associate and enjoying the benefit of a brand name, I would suggest CS, JPM or MS. Barclays and Citi can be a hit or miss depending on what you get staffed on / who you primarily work under at the senior level, but are still good places to end up generally speaking. GS Houston (as evidenced by other recent threads, one of which may have been deleted) is no stranger to significant cultural issues. I would be sure to do your own due diligence via networking with former analysts/associates/VPs who would be willing to speak under some degree of confidentiality. In my personal opinion, going to TPH or Evercore would likely serve you better if you want to be involved in the energy M&A space long-term and don't mind putting in longer hours.
Don't know much about how things are going at RBC, WF, BMO from a cultural standpoint at the moment but I would assume that the hours will generally be slightly better than the names mentioned above. Simmons focuses primarily on OFS -- heard pretty good things about the culture and hours there although deal flow could be a hit or miss. I would stay away from Lazard. I think Moelis is a better bet between the two (non-Evercore EBs).
General Moelis experience from a junior’s perspective is great. You’re a product generalist so you get exposure to M&A/Rx and other product groups. You work hard but you learn a lot.
For Houston specifically, they’re obviously not as well established as Evercore or TPH but they’ve been making moves to build out their practice and it’s been working. Over the last few years, they’ve poached MDs from a lot of the more established shops. As a bank, they’ve got strong ties to the Middle East and as far as I understand it, run all of the major energy deals out of Houston. ADNOC strategic advisory and Saudi Aramco IPO (lol rip) mandates are some examples.
They don’t have a lot of A&D deal flow yet (Jefferies still dominates that space). Moelis has been winning a lot of restructuring mandates in the industry though, and I think that’s their bread and butter.
Good, surprisingly laid back culture in the Houston office, from what I’ve heard. Incoming analyst class of 5-6.
Sources: industry experience, friends at the firm
Interviewed there this past summer and adding on to that, they are trying to leverage their track record in creditor-side restructuring advisory to win more M&A mandates down the line. Also seem to have decent deal flow in midstream/downstream. Agreed that they seem to be growing quite a bit.
My buddy is an associate at TPH. Total comp is $300-350K and typical hours are 9am - 12am with Saturdays off and half day Sunday. He gets lunch and dinner comped and they have a gym at the office. Good culture with few assholes. Lots of brainpower as they get plenty of former engineers.
Going to go out on a limb and assume you meant midnight and not noon.. lol
I would rank as below: Tier 1: Citi, TPH, Jefferies and EVR
Tier 1b: Barcap, MS and GS
Tier 2: CS, JPM, Laz, Simmons
Tier 3: MC, RBC, WF, Scotia, BAML, UBS
Tier 4: BMO, Greenhill, HL, Baird, PJT (opening office next month)
WSO = GreekRank
From an analyst/associate perspective, Moelis should be ranked much higher:
Comp: Tier 1: (90k top bucket A1 bonus)
Exit Ops: Tier 1: (limited network in energy because the office is young, but analysts did really well this past cycle / Moelis brand also opens doors outside of energy)
Deal flow / experience: Tier 1b / Tier 2: - Historically pretty variable, but currently lead Energy & Power league tables as a result of the ADNOC deals / had strong 2019 in RX - Generalist experience (M&A / RX) > capital markets
Culture: Tier 1 (reasonable hours)
Anyone have any experience with Intrepid or Petrie Partners?
both very elite and extremely selective
edit: was praising the firms
Why the monkey shit? The deals they do are extremely complex, and very tough to get an offer from.
Does anyone know what schools these Houston banks are recruiting from for SA and FT. What schools are considered targets for what banks?
The core Texas target schools are UT Austin, SMU, Texas A&M and Rice. Top candidates from TCU also get looks, but the path is definitely tougher than from the first four schools (generally speaking). Outside of that, a decent chunk of Houston banks will target Tulane, Vanderbilt, Emory and UVA but I haven't really heard of too many banks going over to those campuses to do OCR (obviously primarily a geographic hurdle rather than an academic one). I would expect candidates at those schools to do ~2 rounds of phone/skype interviews before being invited in for a superday in Houston. With that said, a candidate from any school that is recognized as a "national target" should be able to network their way in with a little bit of effort and as long as they have a compelling reason for "why oil & gas".
Who?
Names that stand out - might be a little stale but still mostly good:
Barclays - good in E&P in midstream. Probably best in terms of consistent deal wins. Exit opps good esp in Houston CS - typically good. Good lev fin I think. Good e&p and midstream. Exit ops good esp in Houston. Evercore - good midstream. Obvi good m&a experience. Lights out exits GS - good ofs. Not as dominant as a FIG but still has the brand. Lights out exits sometimes Citi - good e&p and midstream. Best performers have lights out exits