Lovell Minnick Partners has agreed to sell J.S. Held, a consulting firm focused on the construction industry and insurance claim management, to Kelso & Co. Lovell Minnick acquired J.S. Held in March 2015.
J.S. Held’s services include property loss consulting, dispute resolution, and construction and development services to insurance carriers, independent claims adjusters, and other clients. The company’s more than 600 professionals have served as consultants, expert witnesses, and arbitration panelists on many of the largest and most complex property insurance claims, construction projects and disputes.
J.S. Held has over 60 offices in the U.S., Canada, Latin America, Europe, and the Middle East. The company was founded in 1974 and is headquartered on Long Island in Jericho, NY (www.jsheld.com).
“Lovell Minnick has played an instrumental role in helping us think strategically about our growth opportunities, and we look forward to our partnership with Kelso which will allow us to continue to add resources to our team, expand solutions to new verticals, and continue our growth on a global scale,” said Jon Held, chief executive officer of J.S. Held.
“It has been our pleasure to partner with Jon Held and his team over the past four years as the company significantly expanded its practice areas, geographic coverage and consultant base,” said Robert Belke, a managing partner at Lovell Minnick.
Lovell Minnick provides buyout and growth capital to middle-market financial services companies, typically making equity commitments of between $30 million and $150 million. Areas of specific interest include asset management, financial product distribution, insurance, banks, specialty finance, and related technology and business services. Lovell Minnick is the successor to the private equity affiliate of Putnam Lovell Securities which was established in 1999 by Jeffrey Lovell and James Minnick. The firm has offices in Philadelphia, New York and Los Angeles (www.lovellminnick.com).
“We are thrilled to partner with Jon and his team. J.S. Held’s leadership position in the insurance industry is a testament to the world-class expertise and unparalleled client service demonstrated by the consulting team,” said Chris Collins, a managing director of Kelso.
Founded in 1971, Kelso & Company is one of the oldest and most established firms specializing in middle market private equity investing. The firm is based in New York (www.kelso.com).
“We look forward to supporting the J.S. Held team as they accelerate their strategic plan to offer best-in-class solutions to an expanded client base spanning new vertical and global markets,” said Steve Dutton, a managing director of Kelso.
William Blair & Company (www.williamblair.com) was the financial advisor to Lovell Minnick and J.S. Held.
The transaction is expected to close during the third quarter of 2019.
© 2019 Private Equity Professional | May 20, 2019
