I’m preparing for summer analyst interviews and was wondering whether I need to prep for LBO questions at bulge bracket banks. I thought those were more common in PE or top boutiques, but a friend said they came up even in generalist BB interviews.
Should I expect LBO questions, and if so, what level of depth is expected at the analyst level?
Yeah, good question. LBO questions can come up in BB interviews, but they’re not super common, especially for generalist summer analyst roles. They're much more typical in PE interviews or at top boutiques like Evercore or PJT.
That said, some BB interviewers might ask a basic LBO question, especially if they have a private equity background or you're speaking with a LevFin team. So I’d say you don’t need to go super deep, but it’s smart to know the basics. Things like:
You definitely won’t be expected to go technical at the summer analyst level, but having a high-level understanding can help you stand out and shows you're thinking like an investor.
Hey There!
LBO questions can come up in bulge bracket interviews, though they’re less common than in private equity or top elite boutiques. When they do appear, the interviewer usually isn’t expecting you to build a full model on the spot. Instead, they want to see that you understand the basics—how an LBO works, why private equity firms use leverage, and what factors make a company a good LBO candidate.
Being able to explain the logic clearly is often more important than getting into technical detail at the analyst level.
For a summer analyst interview, focus on the fundamentals: the role of debt in boosting returns, the importance of stable cash flows for debt repayment, and the key drivers of private equity returns like entry multiple, exit multiple, and leverage. If you can confidently walk through these points, you’ll be in a strong position. Deeper modeling questions are rare for first-rounds, but knowing the concepts will show that you’re prepared and thinking ahead.
