Private Equity
Affiliates of Toronto-based private investment management firm Gibraltar & Co Inc have filed a preliminary prospectus with Canadian securities regulatory authorities for an initial public offering (IPO). The IPO seeks to raise $100 million for Gibraltar Growth Corp, a special purpose acquisition corporation (SPAC) geared to North American consumer-facing companies with an enterprise value of up to $750 million. Among the SPAC's directors is Cam di Prata, founder and CEO of Gibraltar. As reported by peHUB Canada last year, di Prata and other business executives were responsible for seeding Gibraltar Ventures, an investor in consumer-focused technology companies.
6 min read · 04 August 2015
Canadian private equity firm Onex Corp has completed its previously-announced equity investment in Schumacher Group, a U.S. provider of outsourced emergency and hospital medicine clinical staffing services. Onex said it has also agreed to buy Hospital Physician Partners (HPP) through a subsidiary and in partnership with the company's founders, Dr. David Schillinger and Jeffrey Schillinger. Based in Hollywood, Florida, HPP is a provider of emergency and hospital medicine contract management services. Onex said the two investments, the values of which undisclosed, will create a market leader with enhanced clinical expertise and a large physician recruiting network.
3 min read · 04 August 2015
Dicom Transportation Group, a Canadian transportation and logistics business, has acquired the Courier Express Enterprises group of companies, a U.S. provider of business-to-business last-mile delivery services. The deal, the value of which was not released, will give Dicom additional last-mile capabilities in the Eastern United States, the company said. The Courier Express acquisition is Dicom's fourth so far this year. Previously, it bought Extra Express, Modern Forwarding and Orbis Logistics. Based in Montréal, the company has been backed by U.S. private equity firm Wind Point Partners since February 2014.
3 min read · 04 August 2015
Allianz Capital Partners, Borealis Infrastructure Management, an affiliate of Abu Dhabi Investment Authority and MEAG, Munich Re (Group)'s asset manager, have teamed up to acquire Autobahn Tank & Rast Holding GmbH, a provider of food service, retail goods, hotel accommodation and fuel on German motorways. The financial terms of the deal were not disclosed. Tank & Rast is being sold by British private equity firm Terra Firma Capital Partners and Deutsche Asset and Wealth Management. The acquisition is expected to close later this year. Borealis is the infrastructure investment arm of the Ontario Municipal Employee Retirement System (OMERS).
5 min read · 04 August 2015
Canadian organic foods supplier SunOpta Inc said it would buy organic frozen fruit supplier Sunrise Holdings Delaware Inc for about US$450 million in a move to strengthen its packaged products business, Reuters reported. SunOpta is buying the company from a group of investors led by U.S. private equity firm Paine & Partners.
2 min read · 04 August 2015
The Canada Pension Plan Investment Board (CPPIB) has formed a joint venture with Health Care REIT Inc (HCN.N), which operates senior housing centres in the United States, to hold a portfolio of medical office buildings in Southern California, Reuters reported. CPPIB will own a 45 percent stake in the joint venture. The portfolio, valued at US$449 million, consists of medical office buildings in and around Beverly Hills, San Diego and Los Angeles.
1 min read · 04 August 2015
Calgary-based Long Run Exploration Ltd has agreed to a private placement of its common shares to Maple Marathon Investments, an affiliate of Hong Kong's MIE Holdings Corp. The transaction is expected to generate gross proceeds of about $200 million. As a result, Maple Marathon will hold about 43.9 percent of the issued and outstanding common shares of Long Run, an intermediate oil and natural gas business. Canadian private equity firm Sprott Resource Corp, which currently holds an 11.9 percent equity interest in the company, said the proceeds of the private placement will be used to reduce debt and improve its capital structure.
5 min read · 04 August 2015
Canadian private equity firm Novacap has acquired Hallcon Corp, a Canadian provider of specialty outsourced services to the railway and transit sectors in North America. The firm's latest fund, Novacap Industries IV LP, which last October completed a $300 million first close, carried out the undisclosed deal in partnership with the company's management team, Export Development Canada, BMO Capital Partners and other institutional partners. The seller in the transaction was U.S. private equity firm Southfield Capital, which acquired majority ownership of the Toronto-based Hallcon in May 2011. In a statement, Southfield said the company's EBITDA grew four times during its investment.
4 min read · 04 August 2015
The Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec has made a $6 million investment in Wooky Entertainment Inc, a Canadian provider of games and toys targeted primarily to the preteen market. The Montréal-based Wooky has developed more than 600 products that are distributed to retailers in 50 countries. With an established market presence in North America and Europe, the company said it plans to strengthen its operations in the Asia-Pacific region. It opened its first office in Hong Kong in early 2015. Wooky was founded in 2007 by President and CEO Kevin Richer.
2 min read · 04 August 2015
Jeld-Wen Holding Inc, a maker of doors and windows, is working on a potential initial public offering that would value the business at as much as US$4 billion, Reuters reported, citing a Wall Street Journal story. The Charlotte, North Carolina-based company has been owned by Canadian private equity firm Onex Corp since 2011.
1 min read · 04 August 2015
