Steve Gelsi
Arsenal Capital Partners II, the $500 million buyout fund run by New York-based Arsenal Capital Partners, landed near the leaders among top quartile funds from 2006 with an internal rate of return of 21.3 percent as of Sept. 30, 2012, according to data compiled by Buyouts.Terry Mullen, who co-founded the firm with Jeff Kovach in 2000 after working at Thomas H Lee Partners LP and Morgan Stanley, said the firm continues to target specialty industrial and healthcare companies with revenue of $30 million to $400 million. In April, Arsenal closed Arsenal Capital Partners III with $875 million in commitments. Currently, the firm manages $1.7 billion.
Doubling its target in a quick fundraise, Vista Equity Partners is nearing a $1 billion close for Vista Foundation Partners II, its buyout fund series for software and technology service companies with between $20 and $200 million in enterprise value, according to a source familiar with the firm.
Executives at two of the largest private equity firms provided a bullish macroeconomic view for a continued recovery in the U.S. business environment, as they looked past the current showdown in Congress over the debt ceiling.
Brynwood Partners, a lower mid-market buyout shop that owns Back to Nature Foods Inc, Pearsons candy and other consumer names, said it reached its $400 million hard cap in one close for Brynwood Partners VII LP, five years after wrapping up its earlier fund in the same series.
Yenni Capital has raised the hard cap for its Yenni Income Opportunities Fund I by $100 million to $300 million after the New York firm drew strong initial interest from limited partners in its inaugural, lower-mid-market buyout fund. LPs in the fund are expected to be paid a minimum annual dividend of 10 percent and earn at least a 40 percent gross internal rate of return.
Bedrock Manufacturing Co has been flying mostly under the radar in the private equity world since its launch in 2005 by the founder of the $7 billion watch and accessory brand Fossil Group Inc. But after self-funded investments in Shinola watches, Filson clothes, Reel FX animation studio and others, the firm may consider outside investors to fuel growth, an executive at the firm told Buyouts.
Buyout executives appear to tweet or blog more often than they launch an investment in a social media company—and that is saying something because buyouts executives, with some notable exceptions, do not tweet or blog. Are they missing out on what could be one of the biggest investment trends of the century?
Pantheon, the fund-of-funds specialist owned by Affiliated Managers Group Inc, has targeted a $750 million fundraise for its new Pantheon Access platform, which aims to offer limited partners the customization of separate, managed accounts with a lower commitment of capital, according to a person familiar with the firm. The move marks the latest innovation by the London-based firm.
ZM Capital, the private equity media specialist aimed at the lower middle market, is raising money for its second buyout fund with a target of $500 million, according to people familiar with the firm.
Confie Seguros, the insurance specialist targeting Hispanic customers, said it is buying the retail insurance unit of publicly-traded Affirmative Insurance Holdings for up to $120 million in its largest in a series of acquisitions.