Private Equity
Hub International Ltd has acquired Optimum Group Benefits & Insurance Services Ltd of Coquitlam, British Columbia and Wm. W. Hammond Insurance Agency Inc of Leamington, Ontario. No financial terms were released for the deals, which bring Hub's acquisitions of Canadian employee benefits brokerages since January to seven. Hub, a Chicago-based insurance company, said the transactions will help it build a complete mid-market employee benefits platform in Canada. It expects the platform to reach $100 million in revenue by 2021 through acquisition and organic growth. Hub was acquired in 2013 by U.S. private equity firm Hellman & Friedman (H&F) for about US$4.4 billion.
4 min read · 09 July 2018
U.S. timberland investor CatchMark Timber Trust Inc (NYSE: CTT) has announced the close of a US$1.39 billion acquisition of 1.1 million acres of East Texas timberlands. CatchMark led a joint venture, operating as Triple T Timberlands, with a consortium of institutional investors, including British Columbia Investment Management Corp (BCI). The joint venture acquired the property from Campbell Global. CatchMark said the U.S. timberland deal is one of the largest of the past decade.
2 min read · 09 July 2018
BCE Inc (Bell Canada) has agreed to acquire Axia NetMedia Corp, a Calgary-based services provider on fibre communications infrastructure and the operator of Alberta SuperNet. Terms weren't disclosed. The seller is European private equity firm Partners Group, which acquired Axia in 2016 in a $272 million take-private deal. According to a report by the Canadian Press, Partners Group will divest Axia’s Canadian assets but remain invested in the company's affiliate in France. BCE, a Canadian telecommunications business, said the transaction will allow it to assume all operations of Alberta SuperNet, a government initiative providing broadband network connectivity to urban and rural communities in the province.
3 min read · 09 July 2018
Calgary-based energy explorer and producer Strath Resources Ltd has closed its acquisition of oil and gas properties and related infrastructure in the Resthaven/Jayar area of Alberta’s Kakwa region. The seller was Paramount Resources Ltd (TSX: POU). The cash-and-stock deal, announced in June, had a total consideration of $340 million. The cash portion, totalling $170 million, was funded by Strath's majority owner, Canadian energy private equity firm Waterous Energy Fund. Last week, Waterous said it closed its inaugural fund, Waterous Energy Fund LP, raising $1.4 billion.
2 min read · 06 July 2018
Canadian alternative equity firm Alaris Royalty Corp said End Of The Roll Discount Carpet & Flooring, a Kelowna, British Columbia-based flooring retailer, has repurchased Alaris' 13-year investment. Alaris originally invested $7.2 million in the company's succession plan in 2005. Together with the proceeds from the repurchase and royalties collected over time, the investor generated $22.2 million with the exit, as well as an internal rate of return of about 22 percent. Established in 1986, End of the Roll has more than 50 franchise locations across Canada.
3 min read · 06 July 2018
Fonds de solidarité FTQ and Fonds régionaux de solidarité FTQ-Estrie have invested $5 million in Belt-Tech Products Inc, a Granby, Québec-based maker of seatbelt webbing for the automotive, industrial and aviation markets. The funds raised will be used to buy equipment, increase working capital for growing operations, automate Belt-Tech's plant and improve productivity through innovation. Belt-Tech President Robert Bélanger said his company is also looking into acquisitions in the U.S. industrial and military markets, and expansion in the European and Asian automotive markets.
3 min read · 06 July 2018
CEDA has acquired Breakthrough Oilfield Services Ltd, a Dawson Creek, British Columbia-based industrial and field services company serving the oil and gas industry. No financial terms were released for the deal, which saw CEDA buy the business from owner-operator Derek Loomis. CEDA, a Calgary-based provider of maintenance, turnaround, construction and project services to a range of industries, said the acquisition complements its offerings and grows its regional presence. CEDA was acquired in 2005 by OMERS Infrastructure from Precision Drilling Corp for $274 million.
3 min read · 05 July 2018
Canadian mergers-and-acquisitions activity edged lower in the first half of 2018, weighed by trade uncertainty, investment bankers and lawyers said, in contrast to a surge in global dealmaking, Reuters reported. Year-to-date deal volume slipped 2.3 percent to US$130.3 billion ($171 million) from US$133.3 billion in the same period last year, according to data released by Thomson Reuters this week. Factors weighing on market sentiment include fears of a trade war between the United States and other countries, as well as a lack of a resolution of the North American Free Trade Agreement.
2 min read · 05 July 2018
Cirque du Soleil Entertainment Group has acquired VStar Entertainment Group, a Fridley, Minnesota-based live entertainment provider, and VStar's Florida circus arts affiliate Cirque Dreams. No financial terms were disclosed. Cirque, a Montréal-based live performance company, said the buy will expand its audiences with creative content designed for children and families. The deal follows last year's acquisition of Blue Man Productions, reportedly for US$65.5 million. Cirque was bought in 2015 by a group led by TPG Capital and joined by Fosun Capital Group and Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec.
5 min read · 05 July 2018
Hudson’s Bay Co has agreed to sell about half of its European business to Austria’s Signa Holding in a deal that will bring together two German department store chains, Reuters reported, citing media stories. A joint venture will be created consisting of Kaufhof, the German chain owned by Canada's Hudson’s Bay, and Karstadt, which is owned by Signa, one story said. The Wall Street Journal said Hudson’s Bay would receive 1.1 billion euros (US$1.3 billion) from Signa as part of the deal, while Signa will assume 750 million in debt.
1 min read · 04 July 2018
