NetSteps, a Pleasant Grove, Utah-based maker of business applications for real-time management of direct sales channel companies, hired Kevin Vitale as chief executive officer. He was Wall Data Inc.’s president and CEO. Gemini Investors LLC also made an unspecified investment in NetSteps. The Wellesley, Mass.-based shop typically invests $3 million to $8 million per transaction.
SportsMEDIA Technology Corp. secured $12.5 million in growth capital funding from Vicente Capital Partners. The Durham, N.C. provider of graphics, statistics and video used for sports broadcasts, plans to use the capital to accelerate the launch of new products and to switch current products to its next generation software platform.
White Deer Energy L.P. agreed to invest $60 million in PostRock Energy Corp. (Nasdaq: PSTR) in exchange for preferred stock and warrants. PostRock explores, develops and produces oil and natural gas primarily in the Cherokee Basin of Kansas and Oklahoma. It will use the funds to reduce its debt and to fund growth. White Deer is an energy-focused private equity firm. It set up a reserve of $30 million to potentially make additional investments in PostRock.
(Reuters) - Private equity firm Silverfleet Capital is seeking to sell Sterigenics, the Chicago-based firm whose gamma-ray sterilisation technology is used by medical device makers, sources familiar with the situation said on Thursday. Silverfleet is hoping the business, which it bought in 2004, will fetch about $800 million and expects it will attract interest from private equity firms and trade bidders, the sources said. Silverfleet declined comment. Sterigenics's listed competitors include Steris Corp (STE.N) and Canada's MDS Nordion (MDS.TO).
Rescare said Thursday that it has yet to make a decision on a $370 buyout offer from Canadian private equity firm Onex Corp., according to Bloomberg News. Rescare, a home health services provider, said a special committee of independent directors continues to hold talks with Onex. There's no assurance any deal will result from the talks, Rescare said. Onex, holds 24.9 percent of the voting power of ResCare stock, made an offer for the company last month.
(Reuters) - The private equity backers of oil firm Kosmos Energy are considering taking it public in either the U.K. or U.S., which could value the company at around $5 billion, the Financial Times reported on Thursday. Kosmos, backed by private equity firms Warburg Pincus (WP.UL) and Blackstone Group LP (BX.N:), had agreed to a deal last year to sell its interests in Ghana's Jubilee oilfield to Exxon Mobil Corp (XOM.N:) for $4 billion, sources close to the deal had said at the time.
After an unprecedented buying binge from 2005 to 2007, private equity firms are looking for public market exits. But while the pace of new filings and offerings is gaining speed, private equity-backed IPOs have actually underperformed in pricing and first-day performance, according to a new report from Renaissance Capital. Currently, the IPO pipeline stands at […]
I'm hearing that the Dickey Family paid around $20 to $25 million for Modern Luxury Media. Last week, Dickey Publishing announced it had acquired the assets of Modern Luxury, which includes 26 titles in 12 markets, like New York, L.A. and Chicago. The Dickey Family controls Cumulus Media, which will operate Modern Luxury through Cumulus' Structured Management Services division. Modern Luxury was expected to sell for $10 million but ended up going for $20 to $25 million. Some think that's too high. The magazine company, though operating in many markets, is losing money. Earlier this year, Modern Luxury ousted its CEO, Michael Kong, after defaulting on $120 million in debt.
Burger King is changing hands again. 3G Capital has agreed to buy the home of the Whopper for about $4 billion. 3G Capital is paying $24 a share, according to an announcement Thursday. The WSJ says that banks are financing about $2.8 billion of the deal. John Chidsey, BK’s Chairman and CEO, will stay through the transition in these roles and then become co-chairman. Alex Behring, a 3G managing partner, will also become co-chairman. TPG Capital, Goldman Sachs Capital Partners and Bain Capital currently own a combined 31% of BK. They are tendering their shares in the deal. So who is 3G Capital? The Financial Times says it’s a hedge fund based in New York that is backed by a group of Brazilian entrepreneurs, collectively known as “the Trio." The Trio are best known for building the Brazilian brewery that became InBev.
Satellite broadcaster BSkyB completed the sale of its Easynet business-to-business telecommunications unit for 100 million pounds ($153.9 million) to Lloyds Banking Group’s the private equity arm Lloyds Development Capital.