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.
Odyssey Behavioral Healthcare said Thursday it acquired Pasadena Villa Psychiatric Residential Treatment Centers and Lifeskills South Florida. Both Pasadena Villa and Lifeskills provide adult residential and outpatient treatment services. Brentwood, Tennessee-based Odyssey is partnership between Nautic Partners LLC and CEO Scott Kardenetz. Nautic and Odyssey management plan to invest up to $50 million equity to support its growth strategy. MidCap Financial provided financing for the transaction. Brentwood Capital Advisors acted as financial advisor to Pasadena Villa, and The Braff Group provided financial advice to Lifeskills.
3 min read · 30 July 2015
Paine & Partners LLC said Thursday that portfolio company Costa Group has completed its IPO on the Australian Securities Exchange. Costa sold about 245 million shares at an IPO price of A$2.25 (US$1.64) raising A$550 million (US$400.8 mln) in proceeds. Paine & Partners holds an approximate 12% equity stake in Costa following the IPO and is its largest stockholder. Victoria, Australia-based Costa produces, markets and exports fresh fruit and vegetables.
4 min read · 30 July 2015
Halyard Capital and Bridge Bank have invested $28 million in Jun Group. New York-based Jun is a mobile video and branded content advertising platform. Jordan Edmiston Group advised Jun.
2 min read · 30 July 2015
Catawiki said Thursday it raised $82 million in a Series C investment led by Lead Edge Capital. Previous investors Accel and Project A Ventures also participated in the round, as well as several former Booking.com executives, including former CMO Arthur Kosten. Amsterdam-based Catawiki is an online marketplace for buying and selling special objects.
6 min read · 30 July 2015
Autotask Corp., a portfolio company of Vista Equity Partners, has agreed to buy Soonr. Financial terms weren’t announced. Soonr provides enterprise secure file sharing and collaboration services for IT business managers. The Jordan, Edmiston Group Inc. advised Soonr.
3 min read · 29 July 2015
Mereo BioPharma Group Ltd. said Wednesday that it raised $119 million from Woodford Investment Management and Invesco Perpetual. Mereo also acquired a portfolio of three clinical-stage development programmes from Novartis Pharmaceuticals, which will also hold an equity stake in Mereo. London-based Mereo is a recently-formed speciality biopharmaceutical company.
10 min read · 29 July 2015
LBC Credit Partners said Tuesday it provided a $97 million loan to support the merger of Escort Inc. with Cobra Electronics Corp. Both companies are backed by Monomoy Capital Partners. The companies will operate under a new holding company structure with Cedar Electronics Holdings Corp. as their parent. Proceeds from the loan were used to refinance debt, fund a distribution to shareholders and pay related fees and expenses.
3 min read · 29 July 2015
Great Hill Partners LP has agreed to buy Reward Gateway. The seller is Inflexion Private Equity. The deal values Reward Gateway at 140 million pounds (US$218.9 mln). London-based Reward Gateway provides products and technology for HR departments.
6 min read · 29 July 2015
Kainos Capital said Wednesday that Kevin Elliott has joined the firm as a Partner. Elliott most recently was President and COO of Nash Finch Inc. before Nash's sale to Spartan Stores Inc. in 2013. Dallas-based Kainos, a private equity firm, is focused on investing in food and consumer businesses.
2 min read · 29 July 2015
Warburg Pincus said Tuesday that it closed its majority investment in Universal Services of America. Financial terms weren’t announced. Partners Group was the seller. Santa Ana, California-based Universal Services provides security services. Baird advised Partners Group.
2 min read · 28 July 2015
