2026年行业私募股权展望：按行业划分的战略主题（英）2025

2026 Industry PE Outlook:Strategic Themes in a Institutional Research Group Jim CorridoreLead Research Analyst,Industrials Eric BellomoSenior Research Analyst,E-commerce and Gaming Our analysts’ outlook on the private equity market by Brian WrightLead Research Analyst,Healthcare PitchBook is a Morningstar company providing the most comprehensive, mostaccurate, and hard-to-find data for professionals doing business in the private markets. Aaron DeGagne, CFASenior Research Analyst, Contents Rudy TorrijosDirector, Industry Research,Technology 2Key takeaways3Introduction72026 outlooks7Aerospace & defense9Construction & engineering Jonathan GeurkinkSenior Research Analyst, MobilityTech & Supply Chain Techjonathan.geurkink@pitchbook.com Alex FrederickLead Research Analyst,Agri-foodtech pbinstitutionalresearch@pitchbook.com Published on December 11, 2025 Key takeaways •Aerospace & defense:PE investors are likely to find the best opportunitiesin commercial aircraft parts and defense electronics. Demand for aircraftcomponents keeps rising as airlines stretch the life of older fleets, while growing •Construction & engineering:The story is about power, cooling, and data. Electricalcontractors and HVAC companies are positioned to benefit from the surge indatacenter construction, grid upgrades, and reshoring of manufacturing. Solar •Consumer retail & services:Investors are leaning toward health, wellness, andpremium brands that can hold pricing power. Sports and outdoor brands shouldrecover as participation rebounds, and the pet and veterinary space still has room •Healthcare services:Outpatient models such as physician practice groups,ambulatory surgery centers, and multispecialty clinics are gaining share as carecontinues moving out of hospitals. AI tools that automate paperwork and improve •Healthcare IT:PE interest is strongest in tools that manage costs—RCM, utilizationmanagement, and payment integrity platforms. These address real pain pointsfor payers and providers. Broader consulting and IT outsourcing businesses look •Medtech:Surgical tools, diagnostics, and contract manufacturing are the mostpromising areas. An aging population and more complex surgeries will drivesteady demand, while reshoring supports US-based production. Investors should •Software:Enterprise systems that run payroll, finance, customer support, andsupply chains remain the safest bets. They have sticky customers and plenty ofroom to improve efficiency with AI. In contrast, marketing and analytics platforms •Transportation & logistics:Investors are watching for recovery in trucking andwarehousing after a difficult stretch. Autonomous trucking has the potential to •Food & beverage CPG:Healthier snacks, functional drinks, and smaller ready-to-eatmeals are the growth engines. Overcrowded categories like nonalcoholic and RTDcocktails look risky. AI-driven forecasting can help fresh-food producers cut waste Introduction PE investors are increasingly looking to mature industries to generate above-averagereturns. These sectors often have strong demand-drivers along with the ability tobuy and build scale. In many cases, it is possible to layer on advanced technology toimprove costs, quality, safety, and visibility. As capital costs stabilize amid several This report brings together perspectives from PitchBook’s PE sector analysts acrossnine mature industries: aerospace & defense, construction & engineering, consumerretail & services, healthcare services, healthcare IT, medtech, software, transportation To guide the discussion, analysts were asked the following questions: 1.If you were deploying a new buyout fund, which four subsectors would youinvest in because you think they will generate the best returns and why? Rank the 2.Which two subsectors do you expect to see the most overheated competition in 3.Which one or two subsectors have weakening fundamentals today but should 4.Which one or two subsectors are not seeing roll-up activity but should, and why? 5.Which two subsectors are likely to benefit the most from mega themes in 2026 andbeyond—such as reshoring, regulatory change, aging populations, or heightened 6.Which one or two subsectors are the best candidates to deploy AI to generatesignificant top-line and/or bottom-line improvement, and why did you choose them The following sections summarize analysts’ responses to these questions, highlightingwhere consensus emerged, where opinions diverged, and which subsectors may offer Jim CorridoreLead Research Analyst, Industrialsjim.corridore@pitchbook.com OUTLOOK Aerospace & defense If you were deploying a new buyout fund, which four subsectors would youinvest in because you think they will generate the best returns and why? Rank Which two subsectors do you expect to see the most overheatedcompetition in 2026 that are likely to lead to poor business performance and Maintenance, repair, and overhaul (MRO) work in commercial aerospace has attractedyears of intens