Which league does Duff and Phelps exactly falls under in 2017?

The firm has progressed a lot in terms of revenue and geographical expansion. But it still doesn't enjoy an image of a proper wall street investment bank. I know they are focused mostly on valuation but how about M&A and Restructuring. Can anyone please tell how are D&P analysts being perceived by college grads in US, the PE employers, and other banks? Are they still considered a firm similar to Big 4 or have they earned IB BOUTIQUE, MM level status?

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From what I know (1 friend there, 1 friend who knows someone there). DP is mainly good for their Aerospace sector. More like a specialized boutique, but with bigger size. Not sure about exit opps.

Persistency is Key
 

D&P isn't seen as a legit MM bank by any stretch. They are a valuation shop doing financial reporting work (they are the largest indep. val shop and do really well in this vertical). D&P is certainly trying to build up IB as it's a great revenue generator but it'll take many more years of poaching senior MD's to put it in the even in same range as guys like Stifel, Mizuho, etc (I realize these guys aren't MM Boutiques but their M&A practices aren't that strong).

 

I've known people who have done val and gone to Tuck and a few other Top MBA programs.

As for PE, you will be very hard pressed to find people who have made it into legit PE funds on the deal team. People can get into internal valuation roles at mega funds but in val, you aren't seeing the whole transaction. You're just brought on to do post-closing financial reporting work which does have transferable skills to banking / PE. I know numerous people (including myself) who have jumped from val to MM IB.

 

D&P is generally considered to be lower tier on the val side. Top val MDs have left for other shops (Big 4, Houlihan and Alvarez). The culture, from what I understand, is incredibly toxic.

“Elections are a futures market for stolen property”
 

You would be surprised. A lot of the smaller shops specialize in niche work. Also, the Big 4 valuation shops are pretty different. My experience at Deloitte was very different from my experience at KPMG. EY works on shit that I've never seen.

Also, my post wasn't about Big 4 as much as it was about D&P going to the shitter.

“Elections are a futures market for stolen property”
 

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