Luisa Beltran

PE HUB Wire Highlights, 12.20.18

Senior exec leaves Triton as fundraising comes to a close; H.I.G. to exit Caraustar in $1.8 bln deal; American Renal goes up for sale

Altria to buy 35 pct of JUUL Labs for $12.8 bln

Altria Group Inc said Dec. 20 that it acquired a 35 percent stake in JUUL Labs Inc for $12.8 billion. The deal values JUUL, an e-cigarette maker, at $38 billion. JUUL has raised $761.5 million in venture funding, crunchbase said. Investors include Tiger Global Management.

H.I.G. to sell Caraustar Industries in $1.8 bln deal

Greif Inc said Dec. 20 that it agreed to buy Caraustar Industries Inc from H.I.G. Capital in a deal valued at $1.8 billion. Caraustar, of Austell, Georgia, makes recycled materials and paper products.

Steen named director at First Reserve

First Reserve said Dec. 19 that it promoted Paul Steen to director effective Jan. 1. He was previously a vice president.

Pinterest $12 bln IPO could launch in April: Wall Street Journal

Pinterest Inc is preparing for an initial public offering that could value the company at $12 billion or more, the Wall Street Journal reported. The IPO could come as soon as April, the story said. Pinterest is also in talks with banks for a credit line that could come in around $500 million, the WSJ said.

Relay Therapeutics raises $400 mln

Relay Therapeutics said Dec. 20 that it raised $400 million in Series C financing led by the SoftBank Vision Fund. New investors included Foresite Capital, Perceptive Advisors and Tavistock Group. Existing investors GV, Casdin Capital, BVF Partners, EcoR1 Capital, Alexandria Venture Investments, and an affiliate of D.E. Shaw Research also participated. Relay Therapeutics, of Cambridge, Massachusetts, is a biotech.

Alantra invests in Access Capital Partners

Alantra said Dec. 20 that it acquired a stake in Access Capital Partners. Financial terms weren’t announced. Access Capital, of Paris, is a European private asset manager with 8.8 billion euros of cumulated assets raised.

FS Investment Corp closes merger with Corporate Capital Trust

The merger of FS Investment Corp and Corporate Capital Trust Inc has closed, creating the second-largest publicly traded BDC. FS Investment Corp has been renamed FS KKR Capital Corp and will begin trading on the NYSE on Dec. 20 under the ticker “FSK.”

Gryphon-backed HEPACO buys Environmental Management Specialists

HEPACO LLC, a Gryphon Investors portfolio company, has acquired Environmental Management Specialists. Financial terms weren’t announced. Environmental Management, of Cleveland, provides emergency response, remediation, and environmental services and operates across 11 service locations in Ohio, Indiana, Pennsylvania, and Kentucky. EdgePoint Capital Partners acted as financial adviser to EMS, while Tucker Ellis LLP was legal adviser to EMS. Moore & Van Allen PLLC provided legal advice to HEPACO.

Lee Equity closes McLarens deal

Lee Equity Partners has closed its previously announced investment in McLarens. The deal was announced in October.