Petitjean, MikaelVan Schendel, AnneAnneVan Schendel2025-05-142025-05-142025-05-142018https://hdl.handle.net/2078.2/65The problem exposed in this thesis is the one that will be faced by the private equity firm and management at the exit time of their investment in NHV. The objective of the thesis is to value the company today and see which exit options would be more appropriate for the owners. NHV has been taken over in 2013 by Ardian. At the time this company was seen as one of the most promising firms in this sector. Big firms were already present in the United States but the market had still a lot of upside potential. The whole helicopter services sector was and is still, consolidating in order to gain from economies of scale. My analysis goes back to this LBO in 2013 and analyze the market and the company at that time, up to a current analysis of the situation, the current valuation of the company and the possible exit strategies for this company. Valuation was in line with peers estimates as the whole industry is facing a difficult time. The conclusion of this analysis was that the challenges that NHV is facing for a potential exit are related to the fact that NHV is not considered at the moment to be an adequate LBO candidate. The mix of a high level of capex requirements, low FCF, a low debt capacity, a cyclical industry at its low, and uncertainties about an increase in oil prices doesn’t put NHV in the best conditions to be a good LBO candidate. As mentioned throughout the thesis, timing is key in exits and this exit might be delayed by a few years for those reasons. If Ardian wants to exit in the near future, the best exit option considered after analysis is an IPO. NHV ticks the boxes for the following criterias that are favorable for a Belgian IPO: diversification of activities, well known company in the sector, scarcity of IPOs in Belgium, Belgian IPO is a natural buy for Belgian funds, and could benefit from local index tracking.valuationexit optionstext::thesis::master thesisthesis:13342