HOUSTON, March 25, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — The Sterling Group (“Sterling”), a Houston-based, operationally focused middle market private equity firm, is pleased to announce that the Firm has been ranked #13 and in the top 2% of over 695 middle market private equity firms globally in the 2025 HEC-DowJones Middle Market Buyout Performance ranking.
Sterling has been partnering with management teams to grow and build winning businesses in the industrial sector for over forty years. “We are honored to be recognized among the top-performing middle market private equity firms globally. This ranking reflects the consistency of our strategy, the strength of our operational approach, and the dedication of our team and portfolio company leaders. We remain focused on creating long-term value in the industrial sector and are deeply appreciative of the trust our investors place in us,” said Brian Henry, Partner at The Sterling Group. For more information, including the full ranking, criteria and methodology, please view the full report here.
The 2025 HEC Paris – DowJones Middle Market Buyout Performance Ranking seeks to answer the question: “Which large buyout firm(s) generated the best performance for their investors over the past years?” The ranking analyzed performance data from 695 private equity firms and 1,439 funds raised between 2012 and 2021 with an aggregate equity volume of $2.5 trillion. The HEC-DowJones Ranking draws on private equity fund performance data provided by Preqin and data reported directly to HEC-DowJones.
About The Sterling Group
Founded in 1982, The Sterling Group is a private equity and private credit investment firm that targets investments in basic manufacturing, distribution, and industrial services companies. Typical enterprise values of these companies at initial formation range from $100 million to $1 billion. Sterling has sponsored the buyout of 77 platform companies and numerous add-on acquisitions for a total transaction value of over $27 billion. Sterling currently has approximately $9.0 billion of assets under management. For further information, please visit www.sterling-group.com.
HEC Paris and Dow Jones (“HEC-Dow Jones”) released the 2025 HEC Paris-DowJones Middle Market Buyout Performance Ranking (the “Report”) on March 6, 2026. The Report is based on information sourced from Preqin and data reported directly by certain participants in the rankings described in the Report. The Sterling Group provided certain information to HEC-Dow Jones in connection with the preparation of the Report, which addresses certain middle-market buyout fund sponsors and fund vintage years of 2012-2021. The Report ultimately represents the opinion of HEC-Dow Jones and not of The Sterling Group. Neither HEC-Dow Jones nor The Sterling Group has independently verified or assessed the information provided by other parties in connection with the preparation of the Report. In addition, the methodology used by HEC-Dow Jones is subject to inherent limitations due to the confidential nature of the private equity industry, different vintage years, strategies or investment objectives of private equity firms and different performance measures used by such firms. The Sterling Group pays an annual subscription fee to Preqin for access to certain data but did not compensate Preqin or HEC-Dow Jones to be considered for, or ultimately receive, any ranking described in the Report. There can be no assurance that other providers or surveys would reach the same conclusion as the foregoing. The Sterling Group makes no representations or warranties as to accuracy, completeness or reliability of information contained in the Report. Information relating to the Report and its methodology is available here.