Parthenon Capital Partners has agreed to buy White River Capital. The deal includes Coastal Credit, a specialized auto finance company headquartered in Virginia Beach, Va. The transaction is valued at about $79.5 million. OP Trust, a Parthenon LP, will be investing in the deal. Milestone Advisors provided financial advice to White River.
Outdoor Channel Holdings said Friday it is merging with InterMedia Outdoors Holdings, which controls The Sportman Channel. Press reports pegged the deal value at $208 million in cash and stock. InterMedia Partners, the PE firm, owns InterMedia Outdoors. The Sportsman Channel is a cable TV network for outdoor enthusiasts. InterMedia will have a majority stake in IMOH and own, along with minority members of IMOH, 67.6%. Outdoor Channel stockholders are expected to own approximately 32.4% of IMOH. CIT Communications, Media & Entertainment is providing $150 million in financing. Lazard provided financial advice to Outdoor Channel Holdings.
Nike Inc. is selling its Cole Haan handbag and shoe brand to private equity firm Apax Partners for $570 million, nearly 24 years after buying it, the company said on Friday. Nike, which is focusing on its namesake brand and Jordan, Converse and Hurley, planned selling its Umbro and Cole Haan brands. Umbro was sold for $225 million last month to Iconix Brand Group Inc.
General Electric has emerged as the front runner to acquire Avio, a privately held airplane parts supplier, and will present its plans to Italian government officials on Friday, Reuters reported. The sale is being managed by Cinven, a private equity fund that controls Avio. Avio, based in Turin Italy, supplies engine parts for the Eurofighter Typhoon and for General Electric and Rolls Royce.
The owners of Coates Hire have roped in Goldman Sachs for a possible sale of Australia's top equipment hire firm after failing to proceed with other options including an A$800 million ($831 million) initial public offer earlier this year. Private equity firm Carlyle Group and Seven Group Holdings said in a statement that Goldman Sachs will be assisted by China International Capital Corp. in China and Nomura Holdings in Japan with the ownership review process. The two firms own 46 percent each in Coates.
New York-based private equity firm The Jordan Company has acquired the automotive unit of Sequa Corporation. Sequa is owned by the Carlyle Group. The company’s auto division is comprised of ARC Automotive Inc., a manufacturer of airbag inflators, and CASCO Products, supplier of power sources for consumer electronic and handheld devices, sensors, and other vehicle equipment. Terms of the deal were not released.
Private equity firm KKR Co & LP and a partnership of buyout firms TPG Capital and Onex Corp advanced to the next round of bidding for Gardner Denver Inc., several people familiar with the matter said this week, Reuters reported. The industrial machinery maker shortlisted a small group of bidders on Tuesday, including the two private equity groups, after reviewing initial takeover offers submitted last week, the people said. Blackstone Group and Bain Capital, which were participating in the auction process, did not advance to the second round of bidding, they said.
An affiliate of L.A.-based Vincente Capital Partners, a growth equity firm, has acquired a controlling interest in Intellectual Technology of Carlsbad, Calif., which provides hardware and software system integration to motor vehicle departments across North America. Terms of the deal were not disclosed, but Intellectual Technology's common stock will no longer be traded and the company will be delisted.
Chemical maker Innospec Inc. raised its bid for peer TPC Group Inc. to about $745 million, aiming to thwart a rival offer from private equity firms First Reserve Corp. and SK Capital Partners, Reuters reported. Innospec raised its bid to $47.50 per share in cash, from its earlier proposal of $44.00 to $46.00 per share. The offer is being supported by Blackstone Group, which would provide equity financing.
Warner Music and a joint venture led by British impresario Simon Fuller are among nine groups interested in buying Parlophone from Vivendi's Universal Music Group, the Financial Times reported on Wednesday. Universal has received nine preliminary non-binding proposals for the label, Reuters wrote. Universal is being forced to sell the business to satisfy regulators' concerns about its $1.9 billion takeover of the recorded music business of EMI.