Sentinel doubles with $765m fund close

Sentinel Capital Partners has closed its fourth fund on $765 million (€481 million), surpassing its $600 million target, and doubling the firm’s assets under management to some $1.5 billion.

The smaller mid-market fund was placed in less than six months by Credit Suisse. It was more than two times oversubscribed, as was its predecessor fund, which closed on $319 million in April 2005.

“We received very strong support from our existing limited partners and from a highly regarded group of new global investors,” David Lobel, Sentinel founder and managing partner, said in a statement. “The fact that we completed the entire fundraising process in less than six months is a credit to the hard work and commitment of our team and to Credit Suisse, our placement agent.”

Despite the increased fund size, the New York-based private equity firm will continue to target established companies with $5 million to $25 million of EBITDA in the business services, consumer products, food industry and niche marketing sectors. The firm notes on its website that it only participates in “friendly, negotiated transactions”.

Firm co-founder John McCormack said in a statement that as more and more Baby Boomer entrepreneurs reach retirement age, Sentinel expects “a strong, steady flow of very attractive deals in our strike zone for many years to come”.

Some of Sentinel’s most recent deals include the acquisition of air quality consulting and compliance services company, Trinity Consultants, for an undisclosed sum; a $57 million deal for Canadian yarn company Spinrite; and the purchase of mobile dental care provider ReachOut Healthcare America.