How can you estimate the IRR quickly in an LBO?

• Read the IRR straight off the coupon rate the sponsor is paying on the acquisition debt
• You cannot approximate an IRR by hand; it can only be found by iterating the cash flows on a computer
• Divide the projected exit equity value by final-year revenue, and read that ratio directly as the deal's annual IRR
• Use MOIC and years: rules like the rule of 72 or 115 for mental math, or MOIC^(1/years) - 1 on a calculator
• Take the simple average of the company's forecast net income across each year you hold it