Products
Data Sets
Integrations
Services
Company
Dallas, Texas has rapidly established itself as a leading destination for capital growth in the United States. Benefiting from the Lone Star State’s business-friendly policies, Dallas has become a magnet for corporate relocations and a market where capital is increasingly accessible. Among Texas cities, none has capitalized more on this momentum than Dallas, which has evolved into a key hub for financial services, information technology, manufacturing, and real estate.
As the city continues to attract investment and talent, it is positioning itself as a serious contender to New York’s long-standing dominance as the country’s financial capital. A key milestone in this trajectory is the anticipated 2026 launch of the Texas Stock Exchange in Dallas—designed as a competitor to the New York Stock Exchange. This development highlights the region’s rapid economic ascent and signals how “Y’all Street” is emerging as a compelling center for private equity firms and institutional investors seeking long-term growth opportunities.
At Dakota, we provide investment professionals with a centralized platform for private equity intelligence through Dakota Research. Our real-time insights, comprehensive manager coverage, and performance data empower investors to make informed decisions with confidence.
In this article, we’re spotlighting the top private equity firms in the Dallas metro area that are leading the charge in deal-making and market transformation. By the end, you’ll gain a deeper understanding of these firms, their investment strategies, and their impact on the private equity space.
Overview: TPG is a global alternative asset manager headquartered in San Francisco and Fort Worth, founded in 1992. The firm manages over $250 billion in assets across public and private markets, using a thematic, sector-led approach focused on innovation, impact, and long-term value creation. TPG’s 1,900+ employees, including 670+ investment and operations professionals, operate from 29 offices worldwide, serving institutional investors, public entities, and high-net-worth clients.
Focus: TPG invests across five multi-product platforms: Capital, Growth, Impact, Real Estate, and Market Solutions. These strategies encompass a wide range of asset classes including private equity, growth equity, impact investing, and real assets. The firm targets transformative investments in sectors such as healthcare, technology, consumer, financial services, and sustainability. TPG’s approach is centered on active ownership, operational improvement, and alignment with long-term global trends.
Overview: Hudson Advisors L.P. is a global asset management firm founded in 1995 and headquartered in Dallas, Texas. As the exclusive asset manager for Lone Star Funds, Hudson manages opportunistic investments across diverse asset classes. The firm provides due diligence, portfolio management, and risk management services, backed by 800+ employees in 15+ countries. Hudson currently oversees about $38 billion in discretionary AUM and has managed over $260 billion in cumulative assets since inception.
Focus: Hudson Advisors focuses on managing investments across a diverse array of sectors and asset types, including real estate, equity, credit, and other financial assets. While Hudson itself does not originate investments, it provides critical support for Lone Star Funds through its investment analysis, underwriting, and post-acquisition management. The firm is known for its disciplined, analytics-based approach and its ability to manage complex, distressed, or non-traditional investments. Its sector experience spans residential and commercial real estate, financial institutions, and structured products, with an emphasis on value creation, operational efficiency, and risk mitigation.
Overview: Arctos Partners is a private investment firm focused on supporting professional sports franchises, leagues, and sports-related businesses. Its team combines expertise in sports operations, finance, investing, strategy, and data science to deliver collaborative capital solutions. With a long-term, partner-focused approach, Arctos provides flexible funding while maintaining the cultural and operational integrity of its partners. As of June 2025, Arctos manages about $14.1 billion in AUM, investing through its flagship sports funds and its Keystone platform for alternative asset managers.
Focus: Arctos focuses on minority, non-control investments in premier sports franchises and sports-adjacent businesses. Its strategy includes investing in iconic professional sports teams through passive capital structures that provide liquidity to ownership groups without disrupting control. In addition, the firm targets companies that operate within the broader sports ecosystem, including those in media, technology, fan engagement, data analytics, and infrastructure. Arctos is defined by its commitment to delivering flexible, patient capital designed to support long-term growth and value creation, while preserving the unique identity and vision of each organization it partners with.
Overview: RedBird Capital Partners is a private investment firm managing over $12 billion in assets across 10 global offices, with a professional team of 80 individuals. With a decade-long track record of generating superior risk-adjusted returns, RedBird has built a portfolio of 50 companies representing over $60 billion in enterprise value. The firm is known for its hands-on approach to value creation, strong alignment with founders and entrepreneurs, and investment partnerships rooted in iconic intellectual property and long-term cash flow stability.
Focus: RedBird’s investment strategy centers on scalable platforms within three core verticals: sports, media & entertainment, and financial services. In the sports domain, the firm leverages 25+ years of investing experience and a deep operational mindset, building value through relationships with leagues, teams, and athletes. In media & entertainment, RedBird partners with owners of top-tier intellectual property to develop sustainable, cash-flow-oriented businesses. In financial services, the firm targets fragmented subsectors such as wealth and asset management, where consolidation and organic growth can unlock value.
Overview: NGP is a private equity firm focused on investments in the energy industry, with a primary emphasis on the oil and gas sector. Founded in 1988 and headquartered in Irving, Texas, NGP brings over three decades of experience in partnering with entrepreneurs and management teams to build successful energy companies. The firm combines deep industry knowledge, financial expertise, and long-standing relationships to support its portfolio companies through various commodity cycles. NGP is known for its disciplined investment approach and its role as a trusted capital partner in the upstream and energy transition markets.
Focus: NGP focuses on making growth equity investments in the energy sector, particularly in upstream oil and gas businesses. The firm targets companies with strong management teams and scalable asset bases, providing capital to support exploration, development, and strategic expansion. In addition to its traditional oil and gas investments, NGP also invests in energy transition opportunities through its NGP ETP platform, which targets companies involved in lower-carbon and sustainability-focused solutions. NGP’s strategy is grounded in long-term partnerships, operational alignment, and a commitment to value creation across evolving energy landscapes.
Overview: Trive Capital is a Dallas-based private equity firm focused on middle-market companies. Founded by experienced investors and operators, Trive takes a hands-on, partnership-driven approach to unlock value through operational improvements and strategic repositioning.
The firm manages $8+ billion in regulatory AUM, has completed 250+ transactions, and its portfolio companies generate $10+ billion in revenue.
Focus: Trive Capital targets control investments in middle-market companies across a diverse range of industries, including industrials, business services, consumer products, aerospace and defense, and healthcare. The firm seeks situations with complexity, such as corporate carve-outs, underperforming businesses, or companies undergoing operational transitions. Trive provides flexible capital and actively engages with portfolio companies to implement tailored strategies that enhance operational and financial performance. Its investment philosophy centers on thorough diligence, value-oriented structures, and active post-investment involvement to accelerate growth and transformation.
Overview: Merit Energy is a private oil and gas company founded in 1989, focused on acquiring and operating oil and gas assets. Known for its disciplined approach and vertically integrated model, Merit has completed 40+ major acquisitions and raised over $10 billion in equity since inception. The firm manages over $4 billion in discretionary AUM and is recognized for its long-term commitment to asset optimization and delivering strong investor returns.
Focus: Merit specializes in acquiring and managing mature, long-life oil and gas properties in North America. The firm’s investment strategy revolves around the principle of value creation through operations. Rather than relying on exploration or high-risk development, Merit targets producing assets that can be improved through disciplined capital reinvestment, cost control, and reservoir optimization.
Overview: Gauge Capital is a private equity firm with approximately $3.4 billion in assets under management (AUM). The firm partners with founders and management teams to build and grow market-leading companies, aligning interests through significant principal co-investment (with ~30% of fund capital contributed by Gauge principals). Gauge is headquartered in the U.S. and focuses on long-term, sustainable value creation driven by operational excellence, transformational growth, and strategic acquisitions.
Focus: Gauge Capital invests in founder-led and management-owned businesses in Business Services & Technology, Food & Consumer, Government/Industrial/Transportation, and Healthcare. It targets companies with $50–$500M enterprise value, $5M+ EBITDA, and strong recurring revenue. Gauge provides flexible capital and value-add resources, encouraging significant owner/founder rollover (~30%), with an average 2.6x+ EBITDA growth during its hold period.
Overview: Tailwater Capital is a Dallas-based private equity firm founded in 2013 that specializes in energy and environmental infrastructure investments. The firm focuses on assets that ensure a reliable, safe energy supply while mitigating the industry’s environmental impact. Tailwater is known for its Full Immersion approach, providing deep operational insights, sector expertise, and differentiated strategies aligned with long-term macro trends and sustainable, environmentally conscious investing. Tailwater manages approximately $3.4 billion in assets under management (AUM).
Focus: Tailwater invests in companies across the energy supply chain, delivery and logistics infrastructure, and recycling and byproduct management. The firm targets opportunities that support the transition to a low-carbon economy, seeking flexible, high-return investments while partnering closely with management teams to drive operational improvements and unlock sustainable, long-term growth.
Overview: Cardinal Capital Management is a Stamford, Connecticut-based investment management firm founded in 1995. The firm specializes in long-only, value-oriented strategies within the small and mid-cap segments of the U.S. equity market. Cardinal is 100% employee-owned and manages assets on behalf of institutional investors and high-net-worth individuals. The firm is known for its disciplined investment approach, grounded in fundamental analysis and a commitment to capital preservation and long-term value creation. With a culture centered on research intensity and risk awareness, Cardinal seeks to build high-conviction portfolios that reflect deep company-specific insights.
Focus: Cardinal Capital focuses on publicly traded U.S. small and mid-cap companies, investing with a long-term horizon in fundamentally strong businesses that are undervalued by the market. The firm targets companies with sustainable competitive advantages, solid balance sheets, and shareholder-aligned management. It places strong emphasis on downside protection and typically avoids speculative growth or high-leverage scenarios. Cardinal’s value-based strategy is rooted in rigorous bottom-up research and aims to deliver consistent risk-adjusted returns through market cycles.
Dakota Research goes beyond aggregating investment data - it transforms the way investment professionals access and analyze private fund intelligence. By delivering real-time insights, comprehensive manager coverage, and performance data, we empower investors to make informed, data-driven decisions with confidence.
Our mission is to streamline the research and due diligence process, providing investment professionals with the critical intelligence needed to identify opportunities and build lasting partnerships in the private fund market.
To explore more information on private funds, book a demo of Dakota Research today.
Written By: Peter Harris, Investment Research Associate
May 07, 2025
April 09, 2025
April 23, 2025
925 West Lancaster Ave
Suite 220
Bryn Mawr, PA 19010
Tel: (610) 642-1481
© Dakota 2025 | Terms of Use | Privacy Policy