Navigation Sells Physicians Endoscopy

Navigation Capital Partners has sold its position in Physicians Endoscopy LLC to an undisclosed financial buyer, as part of a management-led recapitalization. No financial terms were disclosed. Physicians Endoscopy is a Doylestown, Pa.-based company that partners with gastrointestinal physicians to develop endoscopic ambulatory surgery centers. Edgeview Partners advised Navigation and Physicians Endoscopy on the sale.

PRESS RELEASE

 Navigation Capital Partners today announced that it has sold its ownership interests in Physicians Endoscopy, LLC, to a financial buyer as part of a management-led recapitalization. Financial terms were not disclosed.

Physicians Endoscopy, based in Doylestown, PA, partners with gastrointestinal physicians in locales nationwide to develop endoscopic ambulatory surgery centers on a de novo basis. The Company's innovative business model involves providing a full breadth of management services for its partner centers and maintaining a minority ownership stake in each project. Physicians Endoscopy currently operates 14 centers throughout the United States.

“We're very pleased with the outcome of our investment in Physicians Endoscopy,” said John Richardson, a Managing Partner at Navigation. “Despite difficult financial market conditions, the Company's attractive growth story generated strong interest among financial and strategic buyers, ultimately resulting in a transaction that provides a substantial return for our fund.”

During Navigation's ownership, Physicians Endoscopy more than doubled the number of centers that it managed, entirely through de novo openings. The Company additionally has several new projects currently in development.

“We were initially attracted to Physicians Endoscopy by its unique approach to the market and the exciting growth prospects that we believed this presented,” said Eerik Giles, a Partner at Navigation who, along with Richardson, served as a Director of the Company. “The management team did a fantastic job of capitalizing on these opportunities and dramatically elevated the Company's standing in its market segment.”

Navigation seeks to make control buyout and growth capital investments in companies with revenues between $20 million and $200 million. The fund's principals have previously invested in a broad range of industries, including business and financial services, value-added distribution, packaging, transportation, logistics and a variety of niche manufacturing segments.

Physicians Endoscopy and Navigation were advised by Edgeview Partners during the sale process.

About Navigation Capital Partners

Navigation Capital Partners is an Atlanta-based private equity firm that invests in lower middle market niche manufacturing and services businesses located in the Southeast, Mid-Atlantic and Midwest United States. The managers of Navigation formerly founded and managed Mellon Ventures, the private equity investment arm of Mellon Financial Corporation. With the backing of the Goldman Sachs Vintage Funds, Navigation acquired the private equity portfolio of Mellon Ventures in December 2006. Navigation currently manages approximately $375 million of invested and committed capital. For more information, visit www.navigationcapital.com.

About Physicians Endoscopy, LLC

Physicians Endoscopy is a nationally recognized development and management partner for single-specialty EASCs. The company currently operates 14 partnered facilities with plans to open five additional facilities in the next twelve months. For more information, please visit http://www.endocenters.com.