I've been a business reporter for a while. I've covered Wall Street, venture capital and now private equity. I'm always looking for a scoop or something to talk about. I'm the eternal optimist and am still waiting for the Chicago Cubs to win the World Series. Yes, I believe.
Ares Management Corp said Feb. 26 that its European Direct Lending group provided a 1 billion pound loan to Daisy Group, which will use the funds to refinance its existing credit facilities. Daisy Founder and Chairman Matthew Riley will also buy out one of the company’s minority investors. Daisy Group provides telecommunications, IT and cloud services to U.K. businesses.
3 min read · 26 February 2019
Warren Buffett said Berkshire Hathaway overpaid for Kraft’s merger with Heinz, the Financial Times reported. “We overpaid for Kraft,” the story quoted Buffett saying on CNBC. The so-called Oracle of Omaha added that he was “wrong in a couple of ways on Kraft Heinz.” Buffett and 3G Capital acquired Kraft in 2015 to merge with Heinz. The deal valued Kraft at $62.6 billion. “Anything, almost anything at a price can be good, not everything,” Buffett said on CNBC. “But everything at a certain price can be bad. If you pay too much, you pay too much and that doesn’t change.”
1 min read · 26 February 2019
Yildiz Holding AS is selling its Jacob's cracker unit and production facilities in the U.K., Bloomberg reported. Yildiz, which owns McVitie’s digestives and Godiva chocolates, may sell the entire business or just a stake, the story said. Yildiz has hired Oppenheimer Holdings Inc to run the process, Bloomberg said.
1 min read · 26 February 2019
Thoma Bravo LLC is buying ConnectWise. Financial terms weren’t announced although press reports peg the deal at $1.5 billion . ConnectWise, of Tampa, Florida, provides software that connects teams with platforms and solutions that deliver technology as a services. Holland & Knight served as the legal adviser to ConnectWise while Raymond James & Associates Inc served financial adviser to the special committee of the board of directors. Kirkland & Ellis LLP served as Thoma Bravo’s legal adviser. Owl Rock Capital provided financing for the transaction.
4 min read · 25 February 2019
Quad-C Management Inc said Feb. 25 that it agreed to sell its stake in Compassion-First Pet Hospitals to JAB for $1.214 billion. Compassion-First Pet operates a network of emergency and general practice veterinary hospitals across the United States. Jefferies LLC serves as financial advisor to Compassion-First, while Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher LLP acted as legal counsel to Compassion-First. Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP is acting as legal counsel for JAB.
5 min read · 25 February 2019
Carlyle Group said Feb. 25 that Mark Blaufuss has joined the firm as a operating executive for the industrial and transportation team. Blaufauss is the former CFO of Metaldyne Performance Group.
3 min read · 25 February 2019
Colony Industrial said Feb. 25 that it sold a light industrial portfolio to Nuveen Real Estate, a division of TIAA, for $136 million. The warehouse portfolio totals 2.3 million square feet and is located in four markets, including eighteen buildings in Atlanta, five buildings in Dallas, five buildings in Houston and six buildings in PA/NJ.
2 min read · 25 February 2019
Genstar Capital said Feb. 25 that it closed its latest fund on $5.5 billion in LP commitments. Genstar raised $1.1 billion in committed overage capacity from select LPs. The GP and affiliated entities also provided more than $400 million of committed capital. Genstar’s prior fund closed on $3.95 billion in 2017. Evercore Partners served as placement agent for the fund, while Weil, Gotshal & Manges LLP provided legal advice.
3 min read · 25 February 2019
BlackRock and KKR are investing $4 billion in Abu Dhabi’s oil pipelines. BlackRock and KKR are buying 40 percent in an entity called ADNOC Oil Pipelines, which will lease ADNOC’s interest in 18 pipelines for a 23-year period.
8 min read · 25 February 2019
SK Capital Partners said Feb. 25 that it closed its latest fund on about $2.1 billion of capital. Fund V includes a separate overage pool that will allow SK to pursue larger transactions. Investors include public pension funds, insurance companies, fund-of-funds, endowments, sovereign wealth funds, foundations and family offices. Kirkland & Ellis LLP served as legal adviser while UBS served as placement agent to SK Capital.
2 min read · 25 February 2019
