Twenty-four hours ago, I was convinced that KKR was even money to buy a 55% stake in Lehman Brothers’ investment management arm. Then near market close came news that the entire Brotherhood was for sale, which appeared to leave KKR holding an empty bag (kind of like when it wanted to go public last year, […]
Hammond Kennedy Whitney & Co. have acquired FURminator Inc., a Fenton, Mo.-based maker of pet-grooming tools, according to LBO Wire. No financial terms were disclosed. www.furminator.com
Private equity firms are understood to be in pole position to acquire Alcan Engineered Products, a subsidiary of Anglo-Australian mining group Rio Tinto. A banking source told Thomson Reuters that a deal is imminent, with private equity likely to buy the supplier of customised alloys for aircraft for approximately £2bn (US$3.55bn). US private equity giants […]
US Renewables Group and renewable energy tech company Novo Energy LLC have partnered to form Novo Development Co., a developer, owner and operator of waste-to-energy projects. No financial terms were disclosed. The new company will be led by Tomas Campone, former president and COO of Indeck Energy Services Inc.
OMERS Capital Partners has acquired Maxxam Analytics International Corp., a Canadian provider of analytical laboratory services, from Callisto Capital. No financial terms were disclosed.
Sept 11 (Reuters) – Clear Channel Communications Inc late on Wednesday sold $228 million of eight-year senior notes in the 144a private placement market, said IFR, a Thomson Reuters publication. The size of the deal was decreased from an originally planned $980 million.
NEW YORK (Reuters) – Washington Mutual Inc (WM.N) was downgraded to below investment-grade status by Moody’s Investors Service, after the largest U.S. savings and loan projected a $4.5 billion third-quarter increase in reserves for bad loans but said it has more than enough capital. Moody’s cut the Seattle-based thrift’s senior unsecured debt rating two notches […]
Linens ‘n Things could become the subject of a probe from a disgruntled bondholder, LBO Wire reported. Bondholder Levine Leitchtman Capital Partners is suspicious of Linens ‘n Things’ “quick demise” under the private equity ownership of Apollo Management. It’s true, Apollo only owned Linens around two and a half years before it went bankrupt. And it’s also true that there have been reports of strange management behavior at the company (but come on, it’s The Post…). Even so, this filing is significant for any PE firm facing a leveraged, unplanned disaster with potential for bankruptcy. The key word here is “unplanned.” If Levine Leitchtman’s probe is (a) granted and (b) fruitful, its bad news for private equity’s image and potentially, its deal flow. The probe follows a similar line of thinking as the Mervyns lawsuit from last week. (You might remember, bondholders accused its PE backers of basically sabotaging the company to make money on its real estate.)
Textron has agreed to sell its Fluid & Power division for $1 billion to UK engineering group Clyde Bowers, which is being sponsored on the deal by HarbourVest Partners and Pantheon Ventures. Leveraged financing has been committed by Bank of Scotland, Barclays, HSBC and RBS.
Evonik has agreed to sell its U.S. and Canadian cyanide activities to Oaktree Capital Management for an undisclosed amount. Publicly-traded Evonik recently received a €1.6 billion investment from CVC, while Oaktree recently agreed to buy Nevada Chemicals. www.oaktreecapital.com