Antares Capital was the administrative agent and sole lead arranger on a senior secured credit facility to support the $446 million acquisition of publicly-traded Nutraceutical International by HGGC.
Nutraceutical (NASDAQ: NUTR) is a manufacturer, marketer, distributor and retailer of more than 7,500 SKUs of branded nutritional supplements and other natural products sold primarily to and through domestic health and natural food stores. The company’s products are sold under numerous brands including Solaray, KAL, Dynamic Health, Nature’s Life, LifeTime, Natural Balance, and many others.
The company also owns neighborhood natural food markets, which operate under the trade names The Real Food Company, Thom’s Natural Foods, Cornucopia Community Market and Granola’s. Nutraceutical also owns health food stores, which operate under the trade name Fresh Vitamins. Nutraceutical is based in Park City, UT (www.nutraceutical.com).
“We knew the Antares team would work quickly to understand the complexities of the deal and ultimately play a critical role in the overall success of the transaction,” said Steven Leistner, a Principal with HGGC. “We have worked with Antares since the inception of our firm, and we appreciate the flexibility and certainty of execution they bring to the table.”
Antares Capital is a provider of debt and equity financing for middle-market, private equity-backed transactions. Antares issued more than $18 billion in financing during 2016 and has provided more than $120 billion in financing over the past five years. The firm has offices in Atlanta, Chicago, Los Angeles, New York, Norwalk (Connecticut) and Toronto (www.antares.com). Antares was sold by GE Capital in August 2015 to the Canada Pension Plan Investment Board.
“We are pleased to support HGGC on this latest addition to their portfolio,” said Ryan Simpson, a Vice President with Antares Capital. “Nutraceutical has a strong market position and a loyal customer base driven by the strength of brands it offers. We look forward to working closely with them and HGGC in this next phase of their growth.”
HGGC (formerly Huntsman Gay Global Capital) makes leveraged buyout, recapitalizations and growth equity investments in middle market companies. The firm invests from $25 million to $100 million of equity per transaction in companies that have revenues of $100 million or more, enterprise values of $100 million to $500 million, and EBITDA of $15 million or more. In December 2016, HGGC closed its third fund, HGGC Fund III, LP, with total capital commitments of $1.8 billion, surpassing the Fund III target of $1.5 billion and reaching the $1.75 billion hard cap, exclusive of the general partner’s capital commitment. HGGC is based in Palo Alto (www.hggc.com).
© 2017 Private Equity Professional | September 1, 2017
