It is a large investment firm with billions of dollars in capital. Like people that invest in things like Fidelity funds or Putnam investments, you will find all kinds on people that are invested in it. I could be for all I know or your grandmother could be. I wouldn’t be surprised if the Bushes, Bin Ladens, the Clintons, and the school teacher down the street are all invested in one of their funds. It doesn’t mean anything more than people that have accounts with Bank of America.
According to its website, “more than 1,000 investors from 61 countries entrust Carlyle with their capital” so a lot of people are invested in it. The Wikipedia article on it says that the bin Laden family sold its $2 million investment after 9/11 and that the three remaining founders own about half of the general partnership.
No, the Carlyle Group’s ties to the military-industrial complex nor it’s political connections aren’t nearly as sinister as its role in the really critical part of the American economy. What’s really scary is that they own Dunkin’ Donuts.
That explains the problems that Krispy Kreme has had. I thought KK was screwing up their own operation. Now I know that they were being crushed by a multi-national military contractor.
Did Dubya resign Carlyle and join the board of Krispy Kreme? That would explain a lot too.
Krispy Kreme launched a massive drive of new stores at exactly the time when millions of Americans went on the low-carbohydrate Atkins diet. It was a bold, adventurous move (read risky,) and the Atkins thing was a stroke of bad luck.
Their big jump in capital spending was in 2002-3, and they had negative earnings and cash flow per share in 2004-6. They seem to be rebounding a little in 2007, losing a lot less money per share. My advisor service predicts only an average chance of gain over the next year, and a lousy safety score. There has been no dividend since 2003.
That’s just how devious they are; you actually think that Krispy Kreme’s problems were just the result of an unfortunate coincidence, rather than a vast conspiracy of the coffee-donut-industrial complex.