Happ Controls LLC, a portfolio company of Pfingsten Partners, has acquired the Chempower Ohio Precision Sheetmetal and Owens Precision Fabricators divisions of Holiday Properties Acquisition Corp. It had previously acquired Holiday Properties' Technibus unit. No financial terms were disclosed for any of the transactions, which were initiated by McGladrey Capital Markets.
Riverstone/Carlyle Global Energy and Power Fund has completed its C$1.1 billion acquisition of Gibson Energy, the Canadian midstream oil and gas unit of Hunting PLC. PRESS RELEASE Riverstone Holdings LLC (“Riverstone”) today announced that the previously announced acquisition of Gibson Energy (“Gibson”) by funds affiliated with Riverstone has closed. Under the terms of the merger […]
KB Toys filed for Chapter 11 yesterday, or really, Chapter 22, since it's the toy retailer's second go-around in bankruptcy court. Both filings have private equity fingerprints all over them. In 2005, it was on Bain Capital's watch. This time the failed owner is Prentice Capital (more of a hedge fund). Unlike in 2005, however, KB Toys isn't going to reemerge. So it's actually more a Chapter 7 than Chapter 11. For its part, Prentice has had a rough go of it with distressed retailers. Goody's Whitehall Jewelers, and Levitz Furniture have all gone under on the firm's watch. Here's a good Dealscape post on it. But trouble in toy-land raises questions about the health of KB Toys' main competitor, Toys R Us, which was taken private for $8.2 billion in 2005 by KKR, Vornado Real Estate, and, despite getting burned by toys once, Bain Capital. That was an 11x EBITDA multiple, which looks both impossible and extravagant nowadays.
Vicorp Restaurants Inc. has chosen Fidelity National Special Opportunities and Newport Global Advisors, a unit of Providence Equity Partners, to serve as lead bidders for buying its assets out of bankruptcy, according to LBO Wire. The firms have offered $60 million, which will be put up during an auction next month. Denver-based Vicorp filed for […]
Sage Holdings, a financial and stakeholder communications company backed by The Riverside Co., has acquired the assets of Taylor Rafferty from Xinhua Finance Ltd. No financial terms were disclosed. Taylor Rafferty is a global investor relations firm. www.sageholdings.com
Providence Equity Partners and Ayala Corp. have completed their $9 per share tender offer for eTelecare Global Solutions Inc., a provider of business process outsourcing solutions. The total purchase price was approximately $290 million.
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – Prospects for an auto industry bailout revived in the U.S. Senate on Thursday as surprise negotiations on a compromise moved forward and a vote was possible later in the day. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid said on the Senate floor that the deal, if struck, “would overwhelmingly pass” the chamber that just […]
!!!!!: Bernard Madoff has been arrested for fraud! Fearmongering: Read the eight really scary predictions from "the market's sharpest thinkers." Among them, "Dow 4,000. Food shortages. A bubble in Treasury notes." We Have Been Saying This All Along: It was dumb to lever companies in declining industries, like newspapers. There must be a sentence generator online somewhere that pops out various versions of this line: "Private equity barons bought companies, issued debt to pay themselves dividends, and were hailed as master investors." Leaks: Yahoo's layoff script. I assume this is similar to the way most layoffs go down to avoid a mutiny, its kinda sad to read. A Little Advice: If you're written about in a blog, do not respond in the comments section. (We mean you Halsey Minor). Because this could happen.
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – Senate Democrats on Thursday revived prospects of an auto industry bailout as negotiations on a possible compromise with Republicans moved forward, Majority Leader Harry Reid said. Reid, a Nevada Democrat, said in remarks on the floor that the Senate could vote later in the day on a bill to extend up to […]
LONDON (Reuters) – M&A banking next year will be more Accident and Emergency than Mergers and Acquisitions as companies slim down, banks pair up and the strong eat the weak. Tough debt markets and homegrown business problems will make many potential acquirers hesitate, and bankers expect a drop in total M&A value, along with a […]