health services

Blue Wolf Acquires RHA with MidCap Backing

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Blue Wolf Capital Partners has acquired RHA Health Services from Formation Capital and Safanad.

RHA is a provider of health services to individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities, behavioral health needs, and substance use challenges. The company serves more than 25,000 people each year from its more than 440 locations in Georgia, Florida, North Carolina, and Tennessee. The company was founded in 1989 and is headquartered in Ashville, NC (www.rhahealthservices.org).

“Blue Wolf’s acquisition validates our commitment to the dignity, independence, and equitable treatment of people, as well as their full inclusion into the communities around them,” said Jeanne Duncan, CEO of RHA. “Our team is incredibly proud of this milestone and all that we have accomplished together – and we’re excited to continue building RHA and enhancing our service offerings.”

“Blue Wolf’s approach to health care investing is centered around working with patient-centric organizations that deliver superior care and outcomes,” said Adam Blumenthal, managing partner of Blue Wolf. “RHA’s dedicated staff provide exceptional, high-quality care, as well as a safe and healthy environment for all individuals whom RHA serves. We are proud to welcome Jeanne and the entire RHA team into the Blue Wolf family as we partner to grow the business within the South Eastern and Mid-Atlantic United States.”

Blue Wolf invests from $25 million to $250 million of equity in companies that have at least $50 million of revenue and an enterprise value of $50 million to $500 million. Sectors of interest include healthcare, building products, energy services, manufacturing, distribution, and industrial. Blue Wolf is headquartered in New York (www.blue-wolf.com).

Formation and Safanad acquired RHA in 2015 and during their ownership term EBITDA doubled and, according to Formation, the sale to Blue Wolf generated a strong return. “As with all of our healthcare investments, a primary focus is the quality of the care delivered by the management team and RHA exceeded expectations in this area,” said Brian Beckwith, CEO of Formation. “A resident-focused approach will remain a focal point in new investments, which often leads to excellent returns.”

Formation Capital was founded in 1999 and focuses on investments in senior housing and care, and post-acute sectors. The firm is headquartered in Atlanta (www.formationcapital.com).

Safanad is a private equity and real estate investment firm with offices in New York, London and Dubai. Sectors of interest include healthcare, education, student housing and data centers (www.safanad.com). “We invested in RHA with a conviction that its market-leading platform would provide exceptional care thus generating superior returns in a growing sector,” said Kamal Bahamdan, CEO and founder of Safanad. “Healthcare is an important sector to Safanad, and we continue to want to commit to it. RHA has been another outstanding healthcare investment, and we look forward to seeing the company go on to even greater success under new ownership.”

MidCap Financial was the Sole Lead Arranger, Sole Bookrunner, and Administrative Agent for a $196 million senior secured credit facility that supported Blue Wolf’s buy of RHA. MidCap’s deal team was led by Melissa Morrison and Bryan Rupprecht. MidCap Financial, in alliance with its investment manager Apollo Capital Management, is a middle-market focused, specialty finance firm that provides debt of $10 million to $750 million to companies across all industries.

Moelis & Company and KeyBanc Capital Markets were the financial advisors to Formation and Safanad.

This transaction closed on August 5, 2019.

© 2019 Private Equity Professional | October 1, 2019

Comvest Sells Convey Health to New Mountain

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Comvest Partners has sold its portfolio company Convey Health Solutions to New Mountain Capital.

Comvest first invested in Convey in July 2009 when it completed the take private of NationsHealth, a provider of home delivery of diabetes supplies and insulin pumps, medications and other medical products and a provider of marketing, enrollment and member service to insurers offering Medicare Part D prescription drug plans and other Medicare insurance coverage. In December 2012, Comvest sold the medical products operations of the company to publicly-traded Alere, and changed the name of the company from NationsHealth to Convey Health Solutions.

Today, Convey Health Solutions provides healthcare technology and business process outsourcing services that support Medicare prescription drug plans, Medicare Advantage plans, and other related provider benefit programs. Services include eligibility and enrollment processing, member services, premium billing, payment processing, reconciliation, and other related services. The company, led by CEO Stephen Farrell, is headquartered in Fort Lauderdale and has additional offices in Florida, Arizona, Illinois, and the Philippines (www.conveyhealthsolutions.com).

“Steve Farrell and the rest of Convey’s management team have been great partners,” said Michael Falk, Chairman and Managing Partner at Comvest Partners. “During our ownership period, we were able to transition the company from principally a Medicare focused durable medical equipment company to a provider of technology solutions for government-sponsored health insurance plans.”

Comvest Partners provides debt and equity to middle-market companies. For debt investments the firm will invest from $10 million to $50 million per transaction in companies with at least $15 million of revenue and EBITDA of at least $3 million. For equity investments the firm will invest from $35 million to $125 million of equity per transaction in companies with $50 million to $1 billion of revenue that have positive or negative EBITDA. Comvest is based in West Palm Beach (www.comvest.com).

“With Comvest’s support and financial stewardship, Convey’s business has grown significantly over the last few years,” said Mr. Farrell. “We enjoyed working with the Comvest team and appreciate the strategic guidance they have provided to the company.”

New Mountain currently manages over $15 billion of private and public equity funds. The firm is an industry generalist but has specific expertise in education, health care, software, business services, logistics, specialty chemicals, federal services, media, consumer products, financial services and insurance, environmental services, infrastructure and energy.  New Mountain was founded in 1999 and is headquartered in New York (www.newmountaincapital.com).

Houlihan Lokey (www.HL.com) was the financial advisor to Convey Health on this transaction.

© 2016 Private Equity Professional • 10-6-16

Waud Capital Acquires Ivy Rehab

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Waud Capital Partners has acquired Ivy Rehab Network in partnership with the company’s founder and CEO Michael Neuscheler and the president of Ivy Midwest, Dave Franklin.

Ivy Rehab provides management support services to a network of 45 outpatient physical therapy centers – 43 owned and two managed centers – that are located in the Northeast (39 centers in NJ, NY, and CT) and Midwest (6 centers in IL and IN). The company was founded in 2003 and is headquartered near New York City in Harrison, NY (www.ivyrehab.com).

Waud Capital has known Mr. Neuscheler since 2014 when the firm first identified Ivy Rehab as a strong competitor in the physical therapy industry. According to Waud Capital, the acquisition of Ivy is an attractive entry point for the firm into the fragmented and growing outpatient rehabilitation therapy market. Growth for Ivy Rehab will come from a combination of new therapy center openings, acquisitions, and partnerships in both existing and new geographic markets.

Upon closing of the acquisition, Waud Capital added Jeremy VanDevender to Ivy’s senior management team as President and Chief Revenue Officer. Mr. VanDevender worked with Mr. Neuscheler at Ivy for eight years (April 2003 to August 2011) as the Executive Vice President of Business Development and Chief Clinical Officer. He left Ivy in August 2011 to join Accelerated Rehabilitation Centers (ARC) as Senior Vice President of Operations. ARC was acquired by Athletico Physical Therapy in December 2014.

“Waud Capital has been actively exploring investment opportunities in the outpatient physical therapy market for several years,” said Matt London, a principal at the firm. “The underlying dynamics in this highly fragmented market coupled with Ivy’s competitive position in its core markets, its reputation for clinical excellence and patient satisfaction, and the opportunity to assemble a best-in-class management team have created a compelling investment opportunity.”

Waud Capital makes investments from $50 million to $100 million in middle-market companies with enterprise values from $50 million to $250 million that operate in the healthcare services and business services sectors. Since its founding in 1993, Waud Capital has made more than 185 investments, including platform companies and follow-on opportunities.  The firm is headquartered in Chicago (www.waudcapital.com).

© 2016 Private Equity Professional • Private Equity’s Leading News Magazine • 5-10-16

Ancor Buys DuvaSawko

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Ancor Capital Partners has acquired DuvaSawko, a revenue-cycle and practice-management company serving the emergency healthcare sector. Ancor’s acquisition of DuvaSawko is the fifth healthcare company in the firm’s operating portfolio.

DuvaSawko provides its services to emergency physician groups and hospital-based emergency departments. The company has 30 plus customers that generate millions of annual patient visits in 70 facilities in 12 states. DuvaSawko has approximately 240 employees and is headquartered north of Daytona in Ormond Beach, FL (www.duvasawko.com).

DuvaSawko was founded in 1998 by CEO Charles Duva, MD, and Vice President and CIO William Sawko, MD. Both are Fellows of the American College of Emergency Physicians (FACEP). Drs. Duva and Sawko and other members of the senior management team are investing in the transaction alongside Ancor.

“We are pleased to partner with Chuck and Bill and the rest of the management team in this exciting growth company,” said J. Randall Keene, a partner at Ancor. “DuvaSawko has a similar philosophy to Ancor on the importance of corporate culture and how its positive influence can dramatically impact a company.”

Ancor Capital Partners invests in companies with enterprise values of $25 million to $150 million that have EBITDAs from $5 million to $15 million. Sectors of interest include manufacturing, distribution, health care, consumer staples, and outsourcing. The firm is has offices in Southlake, TX and Dallas, TX (www.ancorcapital.com).

Minneapolis-based Yukon Partners (www.yukonpartners.com) provided mezzanine capital and also made an equity co-investment in DuvaSawko. This is the fifth investment in which Ancor and Yukon have partnered together.

© 2016 Private Equity Professional • Private Equity’s Leading News Magazine • 3-29-16

Salt Creek Capital Acquires WorkWell Medical Group

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Salt Creek Capital has acquired WorkWell Medical Group, a central California provider of occupational medicine and urgent care services.

WorkWell Medical Group provides health products and services to patients and employers to improve healing time for employees, enabling them to return to work more quickly. The company owns and manages five medical clinics that provide occupational medicine, workers compensation care and case management, and urgent care services throughout the central coast of California. WorkWell Medical Group was founded in 2003 by Dr. Sheilaja Mittal and Vikram Mittal and is headquartered in Salinas, CA (www.workwellmedical.com).

“WorkWell has developed an outstanding and diverse client base by delivering high-quality patient care, convenience and experience. We are excited to partner with Dr. Sheilaja and Vikram Mittal on this transaction and look forward to their continued support through the next phase of growth,” said Dan Phelps, a Managing Director of Salt Creek Capital.

Salt Creek Capital invests in executive-led buyouts of companies with EBITDA from $750,000 to $5 million. Sectors of interest are varied making the firm nearly industry agnostic but areas of specific interest include manufacturing, business and consumer services, distribution, and franchisors. The firm is based in Menlo Park (www.saltcreekcap.com).

As part of this transaction Talha Ashraf – a participant in Salt Creek Capital’s Executive Partnership Program and a former senior executive with Kindred Healthcare – will become the new President and CEO of WorkWell. “It has been a great experience working with Salt Creek Capital and Dr. and Mr. Mittal throughout the transaction process,” said Mr. Ashraf.  “I am excited to take on the lead operating role with an industry-leading occupational medicine and urgent care provider with such an impressive, caring and dedicated team.”

Healthcare-focused investment bank Edgemont Capital Partners (www.edgemontcapital.com) was the exclusive financial advisor to WorkWell Medical. Luke Mitchell, an Edgemont Managing Director and head of the firm’s efforts with office-based physician services groups, led the transaction for Edgemont along with Associate Vitaliy Marchenko.

“Through twelve years of dedication and tireless devotion to quality clinical care and patient satisfaction, WorkWell has earned its reputation throughout California and the Western US as being the go-to provider of walk-in medical services for patients and employers in central California,” said Mr. Mitchell. “WorkWell was seeking a financial partner to provide the experience, capital, and management expertise to support the company’s tremendous growth, including its plans to expand to other parts of California. Out of a comprehensive and highly competitive marketing process, Edgemont identified Salt Creek as an ideal partner for WorkWell.”

© 2015 PEPD • Private Equity’s Leading News Magazine • 11-12-15

Webster Capital Acquires Medco

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Epic Health Services, a portfolio company of Webster Capital, has acquired Medco, a provider of health services to patients throughout Texas and Louisiana.

Medco provides enteral therapy services (the providing of nutrition to a patient via a feeding tube), respiratory equipment and incontinence products, as well specialty pharmacy, diabetic, urological, ostomy and wound care supplies and products.  Medco will combine with Option 1 Healthcare Solutions, an enteral nutrition provider based in Chandler, AZ which was acquired by Epic in September 2015.  Medco is headquartered in Houston (www.medcomedicalsupply.com).

In the past year, Epic has acquired six companies, including Nurses to Go, Loving Care Agency, Clarity Service Group, Option 1 Healthcare Solutions, Unifour Nursing and Medco. As a result of these acquisitions, Epic Health Services is now a provider of pediatric skilled nursing, therapy, and autism services, as well as a spectrum of adult home health care services. The company serves 34,000 patients in 17 states and is positioned as the largest comprehensive pediatric provider in the country. Epic was founded in 2001 and is headquartered in Dallas (www.epichealthservices.com).

“As Epic grows, we’ll continue to join forces with companies as dedicated to exceptional patient care as we are,” said Epic President and CEO Chris Roussos. “Medco’s and Epic’s priorities are aligned, with the patient’s well-being and care as our top priorities. Bringing Medco into the Epic family opens up incredible opportunities to advance patient care and further develop our pediatric care continuum.”

Webster Capital invests in branded consumer, business- to-business, and healthcare services companies with revenues of $20 million to $100 million and EBITDAs from $3 million to $15 million. Transaction values typically range from $30 million to $100 million.  At present, Webster has $600 million under management and is currently investing its $400 million third fund which it raised in 2014. The firm was founded in 2003 and is based west of Boston in Waltham, MA (www.webstercapital.com).

© 2015 PEPD • Private Equity’s Leading News Magazine • 10-21-15

Webster Acquires MedMark from Capital Resource Partners

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BAART, a portfolio company of Webster Capital, has acquired MedMark Services, an opioid treatment provider.  MedMark has been a portfolio company of Capital Resource Partners since December 2008. CHL Medical Partners is also an investor in the company .

MedMark provides outpatient opioid treatment services to its addicted patient base through 20 outpatient locations in California, Georgia, Maryland and Texas. The company is headquartered north of Dallas in Lewisville, TX (www.medmark.com).

BAART (Bay Area Addiction Research and Treatment) was acquired by Webster Capital in June 2015. BAART operates 22 outpatient opioid treatment service clinics in California, Arizona, Nebraska, North Carolina, and Vermont. BAART’s clinics provide both methadone treatment and counseling services to assist patients with opioid addictions. The company was founded in 1977 and is based in San Francisco (www.baartprograms.com).

The combination of MedMark and BAART will create the third largest opioid treatment provider (OTP) in the United States.  “We are excited to partner with MedMark to continue combating the growing opioid and heroin crisis in the United States,” said David Malm, Co-Managing Partner and Head of Healthcare Services at Webster Capital. “The combination of MedMark and BAART will create the third largest OTP platform in the country, putting us in an excellent position to continue scaling operations across multiple states.”

Webster Capital invests in branded consumer, business- to-business, and healthcare services companies with revenues of $20 million to $100 million and EBITDAs from $2 million to $15 million. Transaction values typically range from $30 million to $100 million. The firm was founded in 2003 and is based in Waltham, MA (www.webstercapital.com).

Capital Resource Partners invests in lower middle market companies that have positive cash flow and revenues of no more than $50 million.  Sectors of interest include business services; consumer products and services; healthcare services; proprietary industrial products and services; and software and information services. The firm is headquartered in Boston (www.crp.com).

CHL Medical Partners specializes in making investments in the healthcare sector. The firm is headquartered in Stamford, CT (www.chlmedical.com).

© 2015 PEPD • Private Equity’s Leading News Magazine • 10-13-15

Webster Adds-on With Buy of Unifour

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Epic Health Services, a provider of pediatric nursing services and a portfolio company of Webster Capital, has acquired pediatric and adult home care provider Unifour Nursing.  The acquisition of Unifour Nursing provides Epic with entry into the North Carolina market and increases the company’s service territory to 16 states.

Unifour’s President Darius Nouri will be positioned in a regional operations role and will oversee all North Carolina operations of the combined company. Mr. Nouri will also be tasked with facilitating a growth and expansion strategy across the state and throughout the southeast.  “The resources that Epic brings to the table will help position Unifour for accelerated growth throughout North Carolina and serve as an entrance for Epic into the southeastern part of the country,” said Mr. Nouri.  Unifour Nursing was founded in 1985 and is based north of Charlotte in Newton, NC (www.unifournursing.com).

Epic Health Services is a provider of pediatric home health and therapy services as well as adult home health services.  Epic provides care to more than 6,000 patients and its services include nursing, therapy, personal care and behavioral health nursing.   With the purchase of Unifour, Epic now serves its patients in 11 states – Texas, Pennsylvania, Massachusetts, New Jersey, Missouri, Indiana, Delaware, Arizona, Illinois, Colorado, and North Carolina.  Epic was founded in 2001 and is based in Dallas (www.epichealthservices.com).

“We’re constantly on the lookout for like-minded companies that are as dedicated to exceptional patient care as we are, and we found that match with Unifour Nursing,” said Epic President and CEO Chris Roussos. “The acquisition furthers our vision to be the only – and the best – pediatric care continuum provider in the country.”

Webster Capital invests in branded consumer, business-to-business, and healthcare services companies with EBITDAs from $3 million to $15 million and transaction values from $20 million to $100 million. At present, Webster has $600 million under management and is currently investing its third fund which closed in 2014 with $400 million in capital commitments.  The firm was founded in 2003 and is based in the Boston suburb of Waltham (www.webstercapital.com).

© 2015 PEPD • Private Equity’s Leading News Magazine • 10-2-15

Tailwind Capital Invests in National HME

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Tailwind Capital has acquired National HME, a provider of medical equipment management services to the hospice market.

In addition to its medical equipment services, National HME also provides ordering and invoicing as well as data on utilization, cost trends and network management for reporting and analytics. The company provides services to over 225 hospice agencies operating in 35 states. National HME was founded in 2006 by Joshua Robertson and is based in Dallas (www.nationalhme.com).

“Tailwind is excited to partner with NHME to continue providing this high-quality service to the growing hospice end market. We believe there are substantial growth opportunities for the company – through both organic initiatives and add-on acquisitions,” said Geoff Raker, a partner at Tailwind.

Tailwind makes investments of $25 million to $100 million in lower middle market companies with enterprise values of up to $300 million that are active in the healthcare, business and communications services sectors. Since its founding in 2003, Tailwind has invested over $1 billion in 27 portfolio companies and has completed over 65 add-on acquisitions.  The firm has 27 investment professionals and senior operating executives and is based in New York (www.tailwind.com).

Tailwind was represented by CoveView Advisors, a Stamford-based financial advisor (www.coveviewadvisors.com).

© 2015 PEPD • Private Equity’s Leading News Magazine • 7-29-15

Pharos Acquires Physical Therapy Platform

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Pharos Capital Group has acquired a control equity interest in MOTION PT Holdings, a provider of physical therapy and occupational therapy services in New York.

MOTION was formed through the combination of Brooklyn-based MetroSportsMed with Manhattan-based STAR Physical Therapy.  MetroSportsMed was established in 1995 by David Menche, MD. The company combined with STAR Physical Therapy in 2015 to form MOTION PT Holdings.  The combined company has 165 employees and is headquartered in Brooklyn with 10 locations in Brooklyn, Manhattan and Long Island (www.metrosportsmed.com) (www.starphysicaltherapy.com).  The company will continue to use the MetroSportsMed and STAR brands.

Dr. Menche will become Chairman of MOTION and Edward Miersch of MetroSportsMed will become the company’s President and CEO.  Michael Fox of STAR Physical Therapy becomes MOTION’S Chief Clinical Director and Benjamin Gelfand will be the Chief of Clinical Services.

The day-to-day operations of the company will be led by Mr. Miersch, who has decades of experience as an operator in the physical therapy industry.   He will also be responsible for acquiring and consolidating other physical therapy businesses both within New York and in other geographies.

“Pharos has unique experience with underserved markets and mid-sized healthcare businesses, and we are delighted to be working with Dr. Menche, Ed Miersch, and the MOTION management team to find bolt-on acquisition opportunities that will help the platform build the premier physical therapy network,” said Jim Phillips, Partner at Pharos.

“As hospitals across the country look to defray costs, we believe MOTION can capitalize on the movement by healthcare systems to outsource physical therapy services to expert third party providers,” said Pharos Principal Joseph Acevedo.  “MOTION is well positioned to take advantage of this trend and expand its network.”

Pharos Capital Group invests $25 million to $50 million in companies seeking later stage funding for internal growth, acquisitions, management buyouts or recapitalizations. The firm invests across many sectors but has a particular interest in healthcare and business services. Pharos has offices in Dallas and Nashville (www.pharosfunds.com).

The investment in MOTION marks the third portfolio investment from Pharos Fund III and follows Pharos’ January 2014 acquisition of behavioral health services provider Seaside Healthcare and the May 2014 acquisition of Employee Benefit Solutions, a provider of healthcare cost containment and wellness programs.

Investment bank Livingstone Partners (www.livingstonepartners.com) was the financial advisor to MOTION.

2015 PEPD • Private Equity’s Leading News Magazine • 6-29-15

ABRY to Acquire FastMed Urgent Care

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ABRY Partners has agreed to acquire FastMed Urgent Care, the second largest independent urgent care organization in the US and the largest network in both North Carolina and Arizona.

FastMed provides non-appointment based medicine to the non-emergency patient market through its urgent care centers.  The acquisition includes FastMed’s 87 clinics in North Carolina and Arizona and also includes the company’s corporate headquarters in Raleigh, NC, and regional headquarters in Phoenix, AZ.  FastMed employs more than 1,100 individuals across both markets (www.fastmed.com).

“We are excited to be partnering with the FastMed management team and believe strongly that the urgent care industry is at the center of two large trends in healthcare, providing convenient care to patients and lowering medical cost for insurance payors,” said Brent Stone, a Partner at ABRY.  “We believe FastMed’s integrated approach to patient care sets them apart in the industry and will allow them to expand rapidly in the urgent care marketplace.  We look forward to providing strategic and operating value in addition to capital that will expand FastMed’s services to a broader base of patients.”

According to ABRY, FastMed is the fastest growing urgent care company in the US.  “The additional capital and management talent that ABRY provides will allow us to significantly expand our geographic footprint and grow organically as well as through targeted acquisitions,” said Kevin Blank, CEO of FastMed.  “FastMed is in a high growth, high performance mode across all clinical, operational and financial functions.”

Mosaic Health Solutions, a healthcare-themed investment company based in Durham, NC (www.mosaichealthsolutions.com), will continue as a minority investor in the company alongside ABRY.  “FastMed has put quality, affordable care within reach of millions of consumers,” said Mosaic President Maureen O’Connor.  “We are pleased to continue working with FastMed as together we transform healthcare.”

ABRY Partners invests in the media, communications, and business and information sectors. The firm is currently managing over $4.3 billion of total capital and investing out of a $1.9 billion private equity fund, $950 million senior equity fund and a $1.5 billion senior debt fund. ABRY was founded in 1989 and is headquartered in Boston (www.abry.com).

Houlihan Lokey acted as the exclusive financial advisor to FastMed. The transaction is expected to close sometime in the second quarter.

2015 PEPD • Private Equity’s Leading News Magazine • 5-26-15

BelHealth Exits Aureus Health Services

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BelHealth Investment Partners has sold its portfolio company Aureus Health Services to Meijer, a regional hypermarket chain headquartered in Michigan.

Aureus, acquired by BelHealth in December 2012, is a specialty pharmacy and health services company that provides prescription drugs, nutritional supplements and therapy management services to patients, families, and medical professionals in treating a range of chronic health conditions including HIV, Hepatitis C, Cancer, and other chronic and rare conditions.  Aureus is headquartered in Pittsburgh and operates facilities located in New York, New Jersey, Missouri, California and Pennsylvania (www.aureushealthservices.com).

“We are very proud of what we have accomplished at Aureus,” said Richard Friedman, Chairman of Aureus and a BelHealth Operating Partner.  “The company grew revenue 10x under our stewardship and has become a leading national provider of specialty pharmacy and Hub services. Our executive team, led by Michael Nameth, did an excellent job in executing the strategic plan and driving tremendous growth. Meijer, with its strong retail footprint and focus on customer service, is the perfect partner for Aureus.”

BelHealth Investment Partners is a lower middle-market healthcare focused private equity firm.  The firm invests from $20 million to $40 million in companies in three healthcare segments: services, products, and distribution. BelHealth is based in New York (www.belhealth.com).

According to Harold Blue, the founder and Managing Partner of BelHealth, the firm’s investment in Aureus was very successful and was driven both by add-on acquisitions and operational improvements. “Richard and Michael did a terrific job in taking Aureus from a New York-based, local business, to a national specialty pharmacy and Hub services platform. During BelHealth’s ownership, Aureus completed two acquisitions that provided both geographic and disease state diversification. Aureus also established a national Hub to service patients through grocery chains, group purchasing organizations, independent pharmacies and wholesalers.  Aureus’ exceptional financial results led to an outstanding investment return for our limited partners.”

Meijer, the buyer of Aureus, is a privately-owned regional hypermarket chain.  About half of the company’s 200 stores are located in Michigan’s Lower Peninsula, with additional locations in Illinois, Indiana, Ohio, and Kentucky.  Based on 2013 revenue, Meijer is the 27th-largest retailer in the United States.  The company was founded in 1934 by Hendrik Meijer and is headquartered near Grand Rapids in Walker, MI (www.Meijer.com).

2015 PEPD • Private Equity’s Leading News Magazine • 5-21-15

Webster Adds to Epic Platform with Buy of Loving

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Epic Health Services, a portfolio company of Webster Capital, has acquired the parent company and pediatric division of Loving Care Agency (LCA), a provider of pediatric and adult home health care services. Simultaneous with the close of this transaction, the adult division of Loving Care Agency was spun off into a new operating entity separate from Epic Health Services.

LCA is a provider of pediatric homecare and home health aide services throughout New Jersey. The pediatric division provides nursing services to medically fragile and complex children in their homes and schools and serves more than 1,500 patients in seven states.  The home health aide division assists patients, most of whom are either elderly or disabled, with activities of daily living, such as bathing, dressing, walking and meal preparation. LCA is headquartered north of New York City in Hasbrouck Heights, NJ (www.lovingcareagency.com).

Epic Health Services is a provider of pediatric home health and therapy services as well as adult home health services.  Epic provides care to more than 6,000 patients throughout its service area.  Services provided include skilled nursing, therapy, personal care and behavioral health nursing.   With the purchase of LCA, Epic now serves its patients in 10 states, including Texas, Pennsylvania, Massachusetts, New Jersey, Missouri, Indiana, Delaware, Arizona, Illinois and Colorado.  Epic was founded in 2001 and is based in Dallas (www.epichealthservices.com).

Webster Capital invests in branded consumer, business- to-business, and healthcare services companies with EBITDAs from $2 million to $15 million and transaction values from $20 million to $100 million. The firm was founded in 2003 and is based in Waltham, MA (www.webstercapital.com). 

© 2015 PEPD • Private Equity’s Leading News Magazine • 2-19-15

Madison Dearborn Acquires Walgreens Infusion Services

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Madison Dearborn Partners (MDP) has signed an agreement with Walgreens to acquire a majority interest in Walgreens Infusion Services. The transaction is expected to close during the second quarter of calendar year 2015.  At the conclusion of this transaction, Walgreens Infusion Services will become a new independent, privately-held company with Walgreens maintaining a significant minority interest.

Walgreens Infusion Services is one of the nation’s largest providers of home and alternate treatment site infusion services.  Walgreens Infusion Services’ geographic footprint includes 89 infusion pharmacies and 110 alternate treatment sites in 40 states, approximately 4,700 employees and the ability to serve more than 90 percent of the US population. Its clinical personnel, including nurses, pharmacists, technicians and dieticians, treat patients who are managing a broad range of acute and chronic conditions.

Paul Mastrapa, current divisional vice president of Walgreens Infusion Services, will serve as the new company’s CEO.   “The new company, which will have an industry-leading management team supported by MDP and Walgreens, will be positioned to provide even greater value to patients, local health systems, health plans and pharmaceutical manufacturers,” said Mr. Mastrapa.

In support of the transaction, BofA Merrill Lynch will lead the first lien financing and Goldman Sachs Mezzanine fund is providing the second lien notes.

Madison Dearborn Partners has a history of successfully investing in health care across a range of sub-sectors including hospitals, home and community-based care, skilled nursing facilities, life sciences, specialty pharmaceuticals and medical products. Investments in health care services companies include Team Health, National Mentor Holdings and Valitas. The firm’s most recent health care investments include Kaufman Hall, Ikaria and Sage Products.

“MDP looks forward to our business relationship with Walgreens, and we are confident the new company is well positioned to continue to grow in the alternate-site infusion services industry,” said Tim Sullivan, managing director, Madison Dearborn Partners. “Working in close collaboration with Paul Mastrapa and his team, and also with Walgreens, we plan to invest in additional resources and new technology to enhance the company’s preeminent capabilities as an alternate site provider of critical health care services.”

Madison Dearborn Partners has more than $18 billion of capital under management. Sectors of interest include basic industries; business and government services; consumer; financial and transaction services; healthcare; and telecom, media and technology services.  Madison Dearborn was founded in 1992 and is based in Chicago (www.mdcp.com).

Walgreens is the nation’s largest drugstore chain and constitutes the Retail Pharmacy USA Division of Walgreens Boots Alliance (Nasdaq: WBA).  Walgreens operates 8,229 drugstores with a presence in all 50 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico and the US Virgin Islands. The company is headquartered in Chicago (www.walgreens.com).

BofA Merrill Lynch acted as financial advisor and Sidley Austin acted as legal advisor to Walgreens, and Weil, Gotshal & Manges provided antitrust counsel.  MDP was advised by Barclays, Deutsche Bank and Goldman Sachs. Kirkland & Ellis acted as legal advisor to MDP and Ropes & Gray provided regulatory counsel.

© 2015 PEPD • Private Equity’s Leading News Magazine • 1-21-15

The Cambian Group, a GI Partners Portfolio Company, Completes Initial Public Offering

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GI Partners has announced the Cambian Group plc (“Cambian”), a portfolio company, successfully listed on the main market of the London Stock Exchange (CMBN.L) in April 2014.

Cambian is one of the UK’s largest specialist behavioral health service providers with a specific focus on children and adults who present high severity needs with challenging behaviors and complex care requirements. The Cambian Group was formed by the merger of three GI Partners portfolio companies (Cambian Group, Care Aspirations, and Advanced Childcare). The company is based in London (www.cambiangroup.com).

“We are incredibly proud to have supported Cambian in its development over the past ten years,” said Alfred Foglio, Managing Partner of GI Partners. “Cambian’s success story highlights the significant opportunity to transform the delivery of behavioural healthcare services as outsourcing continues.”

The listing of Cambian marks the completion of GI’s platform build of a leading healthcare provider, and provides the management team with long-term capital to take advantage of attractive market opportunities.

Cambian was founded in 2004 through a management buyout of NHP Healthcare Partnership led by GI Partners. Cambian and GI Partners’ vision was to create the highest quality provider of specialist behavioral health services. At the time of GI’s investment, the company had three mental health rehabilitation hospitals and approximately 50 employees. Today, Cambian employs 6,000 people across a UK-wide portfolio of 249 purpose-designed facilities, comprising 23 schools, 35 hospitals, 188 specialist homes / day facilities, and 3 fostering offices. In 2010, Cambian implemented a shared services agreement with a GI Partners portfolio company, Care Aspirations, an independent provider of specialist learning disability services for adults, thereby expanding its service capabilities. In 2014, Cambian and Care Aspirations merged with GI portfolio company, Advanced Childcare, a leading provider of specialist behavioral, emotional, and social difficulties residential services, to form The Cambian Group, which subsequently went public on the London Stock Exchange. The combined entity affords the company a powerful strategic presence across both children and adults, as well as the four major segments of care: congenital, behavioral and emotional social difficulties, mental health, and acquired conditions.

GI Partners invests from $50 million to $250 million in companies with enterprise values of $100 million to $750 million.  Sectors of interest include IT infrastructure & services; healthcare services; leisure & retail; and financial & real estate services.  Since founding, GI has managed $10 billion across four private equity funds and invested in 38 platform investments. GI Partners is based in Menlo Park (www.gipartners.com).

2014 PEPD • Private Equity’s Leading News Magazine • 6-10-14

Huntington Capital Invests in Cubex

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Huntington Capital, through its third fund, has provided preferred equity and mezzanine debt as a growth capital investment in Cubex, a provider of cloud based inventory management and point of use dispensing services in the healthcare, veterinary and dental markets. The capital will be deployed to help drive growth as the company executes on new contracts.

“We have been very impressed by the team at Cubex and their laser focus on understanding and meeting their client’s needs, which is reinforced by an extremely supportive and rapidly growing customer base. We look forward to partnering with the Cubex management team and being a part of the next phase of value creation at the company,” said Frank Mora, Principal of Huntington Capital.

Cubex is a provider of health care products and services that help healthcare, veterinary and dental practices reduce the cost of ownership associated with pharmacy and supplies.  The company’s technologies include Cubex automated dispensing systems, CubexRx narcotic management stations, QBud wireless access devices and the myCubex Web-hosted software and business intelligence application.  The company was founded in 2008 and is headquartered in Tempe, AZ (www.cubexsystem.com).

“We are excited about our partnership with Huntington Capital. Their expertise in structuring a financial vehicle that’s meets the needs of a young growth company has been invaluable,” said Anton Visser, Cubex’s founder and CEO.

Huntington Capital is a mezzanine capital provider to lower middle market companies throughout California and the Southwestern United States. Huntington is operating three limited partnerships and is currently seeking new investments for its recently formed Huntington Capital Fund III.  Huntington invests in businesses generating between $10 million and $75 million in revenues across a range of industries. Investments are typically structured in the form of growth capital, buyout or acquisition financing ranging between $2 million and $7 million. The firm was founded in 2000 and is based in San Diego (www.huntingtoncapital.com).

MDB Capital Group acted as exclusive advisor to Cubex in the transaction.

© 2014 PEPD • Private Equity’s Leading News Magazine • 5-14-14

Pamlico Capital Acquires Valued Relationships

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Pamlico Capital has acquired a majority interest in Valued Relationships, a provider of telehealth monitoring. CEO Chris Hendriksen and President Andy Schoonover will retain significant ownership of the company and will continue to manage Valued Relationships. The investment by Pamlico was made through the firm’s third fund.

“Having invested in several related healthcare businesses over time, we were immediately impressed with the company’s high quality service offering, unique channel strategy and focus on improving outcomes for a growing demographic of elderly, ill and disabled clients,” said Pamlico Partner Art Roselle. “We are thrilled about the opportunity to partner with Chris and Andy and look forward to working with the VRI team to grow the business.”

Valued Relationships, Inc. (VRI) is a provider of telehealth monitoring, monitored medication adherence services, and medical alert systems, serving over 100,000 actively monitored clients. VRI’s services enable seniors, the chronically ill, and those with disabilities to maintain their independence and to avoid long-term care facilities, preventable ER use, hospitalization and hospital readmission. The company’s Care Center processes over two million medical alert and telehealth signals annually. VRI serves clients across the United States through commercial and government-funded health benefit programs administered by national and regional health plans, and other Managed Care Organizations. VRI was founded in 1989 and is headquartered in Franklin, OH (www.monitoringcare.com).

“Andy and I are proud of the growth and success that the business and our employees have achieved and are excited about taking this next step with Pamlico,” said CEO Chris Hendriksen.  “The team at Pamlico has significant knowledge of our business and a strong appreciation for VRI’s core goal of helping to extend and improve quality of life for our clients.”

Pamlico Capital invests from $25 million to $100 million in companies with total enterprise values of between $50 million and $250 million. Sectors of interest include business and technology services, communications, and healthcare. Pamlico Capital currently manages over $2 billion in assets and is based in Charlotte, NC (www.pamlicocapital.com).

VRI was advised by Triple Tree (financial advisor) and McDermott Will & Emery (legal counsel). Pamlico was advised by Alston & Bird LLP (legal counsel).

© 2014 PEPD • Private Equity’s Leading News Magazine • 2-4-14

Bison Capital Partners Invests in United Therapies

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Bison Capital Partners has made an investment in United Therapies, a provider of urological services. The investment by Bison was used to acquire the equity interests of the company’s two founding physician partners, Drs. Donald Norris and Marc Rubenstein, who were the company’s largest shareholders.

United Therapies is a provider of urological services, technology and equipment, including lithotripsy – a proven, non-invasive procedure for the treatment of kidney stones. The company acquires, owns and operates lithotripter units, including fixed site and mobile lithotripter units, and provides lithotripsy related urological services. The company currently operates through four fixed site locations and 32 mobile lithotripters covering approximately 210 sites in the states of Colorado, Illinois, Iowa, Indiana, Maine, New Hampshire, New Mexico, New York, Pennsylvania, Texas, Virginia, Washington and Wisconsin. United Therapies was founded in 1986 and is based in Chicago (www.unitedtherapies.com).

“Bison Capital is very excited to be teaming up with CEO Bruce Cohen and his management team at United Therapies, as well as our over 300 physician partners who are also invested in the business. We believe that United Therapies represents an outstanding platform from which we can profitably grow the business, while ensuring that the company continues to provide the highest levels of service,” said Andreas Hildebrand, a Partner at Bison Capital.

Bison Capital makes equity investments in public and private middle-market companies that have revenues of $20 million to $500 million and EBITDAs greater than $5 million. The firm is industry agnostic however sectors where the firm has specific experience include business services, healthcare, industrial, transportation services, financial services, environmental services, energy, distribution and logistics. Bison Capital has closed four private equity funds totaling over $600 million since its inception in 2001 and currently has more than $350 million of capital under management. The firm is based in Santa Monica with an office in New York (www.bisoncapital.com).

“Since United Therapies’ founding 28 years ago, the company has established a proven track record of excellence and innovation in delivering high quality health services to our patients and physician and facility partners. As a result, we remain one of the premier lithotripsy companies in the country as evidenced by being the first company in the industry to be acquired by private equity,” said United Therapies CEO Bruce Cohen. “We believe that our partnership with Bison Capital, given its expertise in the market, substantial relationships and access to its capital, will enable the company to expand and take advantage of the many opportunities that exist and that we were unable to take advantage of previously.”

© 2014 PEPD • Private Equity’s Leading News Magazine • 1-6-14