Mason Wells has sold Aquion, a water treatment equipment company, to publicly-traded Pentair for $160 million in cash. Mason Wells acquired Aquion through its third fund in December 2013 from Ares Capital.
Aquion, with annual revenues of approximately $72 million, is a manufacturer of water treatment equipment and water quality products including water conditioners and softeners, carbon filters and filtration systems, reverse osmosis systems, and ozone and ultraviolet disinfection systems. The company’s products are used in both the residential and commercial water treatment industry.
Aquion’s residential brands include RainSoft and Erie Water Treatment, and its commercial brands include OptiPure and ClearWater Tech. Aquion was founded in 1953 and has approximately 170 employees across three facilities located in Illinois, California and Belgium. The company, led by CEO Michael Madsen, is headquartered near Chicago in Roselle, IL (www.aquion.com).
“Aquion is a tremendous company led by one of the industry’s best management teams,” said Tom Smith, executive managing director of Mason Wells. “During our ownership of the company over the past five years, Aquion has established itself as a leader through sales channel and geographic expansion, product innovation, and operational excellence. We have been fortunate to partner with such a passionate and talented management team who has the business poised for continued success well into the future.”
Mason Wells makes investments in Midwest-based companies with revenues of $25 million to $300 million and EBITDAs of $5 million to $30 million. Sectors of interest include consumer packaged goods; packaging materials and converting; outsourced business services; and engineered products and services. In February 2016, Mason Wells held a final closing of Mason Wells Buyout Fund IV and its related Executive Buyout Fund IV with total commitments of $615 million. The firm was founded in 1998 and is based in Milwaukee (www.masonwells.com).
Pentair (NYSE: PTR) designs, manufactures, and services water treatment equipment and products with annual revenues of approximately $2.8 billion. The company has 130 locations in 34 countries and 10,000 employees and is headquartered in the Minneapolis suburb of Arden Hills, MN (www.pentair.com).
Robert W. Baird (www.rwbaird.com) was the financial advisor to Aquion.
© 2019 Private Equity Professional | February 15, 2019
