By Edwin Richards Private equity deals have gone through a rocky patch but there is still plenty of capital looking for a home, says Edwin Richards Whilst popular in decades gone by, the age of the conglomerate has long been over. Most investors want to decide which sectors they invest in and want to be associated with champions in those sectors. They don’t want company managers using “spare” cash to invest in an unrelated business. They would generally prefer it to be returned to shareholders, by way of dividend. Many CEOs like to acquire businesses as it is generally seen as the aggressive m…