Avondale adds investment bankers

That's how Pharos Capital Group managing partner Michael Devlin views an IPO exit from a portfolio company. Devlin yesterday sat with Cumberland Pharmaceuticals CEO A.J. Kazimi, Waller Lansden partner Matt Burnstein and Nashville Capital Network Executive Director Sid Chambless on a panel discussing IPOs, M&A and financing.

Though 2010 is looking better than '09 for deals, the IPO market is still narrow and Devlin said his firm always plans on a private M&A exit when it makes an investment. "An IPO is a lottery kind of win," he said.