American Securities is a leader in middle-market private equity with one of the most consistent track records in the industr

http://www.american-securities.com/

 

American Securities Closes $5 Billion Private Equity Fund at Hard Cap

 

DEFINITION OF 'MIDDLE MARKET FIRM'

A firm with sizeable annual revenues, ranging from $50 million to $1 billion. As the term implies, such a firm is one that straddles the "middle market" between the smaller companies and the billion-dollar giants. In the case of professions such as legal, accounting and brokerage, middle market firms are those that are just below the dominant firms (such as the Big Four in accounting) in their respective field. 

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BREAKING DOWN 'MIDDLE MARKET FIRM'

The limits that define a middle market firm are not set, with some definitions setting the lower limit for annual revenues as low as $10 million, while others set the upper limit at $500 million. 


Middle market firms are one of the pillars of the U.S. economy, since they account for a significant share of job creation. They are generally among the fastest-growing firms in terms of revenues. Publicly traded middle market firms may often be classified as mid-capitalization stocks, a segment that investors find particularly attractive because of their high-growth prospects coupled with a lower degree of risk than small-cap or speculative stocks. 

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American Securities, LLC, a leading U.S. private equity firm, today announced the first and final closing of American Securities Partners VII, L.P. (ASP VII) with total capital commitments of $5 billion.  As a result of strong investor interest, American Securities closed the fund above the $4 billion target and at the hard cap the firm established at the outset of fundraising in September 2014.

“American Securities greatly appreciates the interest expressed in ASP VII by many long-standing relationships, as well as new investors, from the US and global investing community,” said Michael G. Fisch, President and CEO of American Securities.  “This new partnership provides us with further equity capital to support management teams in growing their businesses.”

American Securities invests in partnership with existing management teams of market-leading businesses, generally having $200 million to $2 billion of revenues and/or $50 million to $200 million of EBITDA.  The firm strives to be a long-term, value-added partner to the CEOs and management teams of the companies in which it is privileged to invest.  In deploying ASP VII, American Securities will pursue the same disciplined investment approach developed over the past 20 years and will aim to invest $200 million to $500 million of equity capital in each situation, although larger investments are also possible.

“ASP VII maintains the 25-year fund life potential of prior American Securities funds, thus permitting American Securities to remain invested in a company for many years and allowing management teams the flexibility to always act in the best long-term interest of their businesses,” stated David L. Horing, a Managing Director of American Securities, who along with Mr. Fisch is a Managing Member of ASP VII’s general partner. 

American Securities also plans to continue its tradition of investing with conservative financial structures.  CEOs of companies partnered with American Securities often comment that these aspects are beneficial to their businesses.  “We are a company with a long history of employee and management ownership, and American Securities has been a strong partner for us because of their long-term perspective coupled with their willingness to utilize lower leverage, which has provided greater flexibility to our business,” said Joe Chlapaty, Chairman and CEO of Advanced Drainage Systems, Inc. (NYSE: WMS).

The firm is led by an experienced and cohesive team.  The Managing Directors on the Investment Team average more than 13 years at American Securities.  Bill Redmond, former President and CEO of General Chemical Corporation, commented on the capabilities and support that American Securities provides, “During our partnership, we benefitted greatly from the stability and insight of the American Securities team.  They helped us create value for all of our stakeholders.” 

In addition to the Investment Team, American Securities supports management teams with the Firm’s Resources Group, a team of functional experts available upon request by CEOs.  George Thanopoulos, CEO of Metaldyne Performance Group Inc. (NYSE: MPG) explained, “American Securities has been a truly value-added partner.  We have been able to continuously access the Resources Group, particularly in the areas of information technology and human capital.  American Securities brought MPG talent and unique capabilities that we’ve not seen in other private equity firms.”  Since 2006, the Resources Group has included a strong China office to support management teams’ Asia-Pacific activities.  Dave Brooks, President and CEO of Unifrax Corporation, observed, “We chose to work with American Securities a second time because of the strong relationships we built with their team initially.  In addition, we wanted to expand our footprint in China and felt that American Securities’ local team in Shanghai provided valuable specialized expertise.”

 

 

 

American Securities Completes Acquisition of Royal Adhesives and Sealants

 

American Securities LLC, a leading U.S. private equity firm, today announced its acquisition of Royal Adhesives and Sealants, LLC in partnership with the Company’s management team. Royal is a leading producer of proprietary, high-performance adhesives and sealants. The Company was majority owned by Arsenal Capital Partners. Financial terms of the transaction were not disclosed.

Headquartered in South Bend, Indiana, Royal offers a broad range of specialty formulated products designed to solve complex bonding, laminating and sealing applications across a diverse range of markets, including aerospace and defense, construction, specialty packaging, automotive, and industrial. The Company utilizes a variety of chemistries to offer customized epoxy, solvent-based, and water-based products to meet the most demanding adhesive and sealant applications.

Ted Clark, President and CEO of Royal Adhesives & Sealants, said, “We are excited to partner with American Securities because they are ideally positioned to support our next phase of growth and development. American Securities has significant experience in the specialty chemical sector and a broad and experienced team upon which we can draw. We look forward to working with them as we continue to focus on providing adhesive and sealant application solutions that create value for our global customers.”

Scott M. Wolff, Managing Director at American Securities, commented, “We believe that the Company’s commitment to product innovation, combined with its experienced and customer-focused management team, positions Royal for a strong future. We look forward to bringing our resources to bear to support Ted and his team for Royal’s continued success.”

Weil, Gotshal & Manges LLP served as legal counsel to American Securities, and DLA Piper LLP served as legal counsel to Arsenal and Royal with respect to the transaction. KeyBanc Capital Markets acted as financial advisor to American Securities, and Credit Suisse Securities (USA) LLC and The Valence Group acted as financial advisors to Royal with respect to the transaction.

About Royal Adhesives and Sealants, LLC
Royal is a leading producer of proprietary, high-performance adhesives and sealants. Headquartered in South Bend, Indiana, Royal offers a broad range of specialty formulated products designed to solve complex bonding, laminating and sealing applications across a diverse range of markets including aerospace and defense, construction, specialty packaging, automotive and industrial. The Company offers a broad spectrum of customized thermosetting epoxy and urethane, solvent-based, and water-based technologies to meet the most demanding adhesive and sealant applications. For additional information on Royal, please visitwww.royaladhesives.com.

About American Securities LLC
American Securities is a leading U.S. private equity firm with approximately $15 billion under management. Based in New York with an office in Shanghai, American Securities invests in market-leading North American companies with annual revenues generally ranging from $200 million to $2 billion and/or $50 million to $200 million of EBITDA.

Contact Information
For Royal Adhesives and Sealants, LLC, please contact:
Ted Clark
President and Chief Executive Officer
626-203-3745
ted.clark@rascp.com

For American Securities, please contact:
Caroline Harris-Gibson or Nick Rust
Prosek Partners
212-279-3115 x222 / 252
cgibson@prosek.com / nrust@prosek.com

 

American Securities Leads Recapitalization of Aspen Dental

 

American Securities LLC, Ares Management, L.P., and Leonard Green & Partners, L.P. today announced that an affiliate of American Securities has entered into a definitive agreement to recapitalize Aspen Dental Management Inc. (“Aspen Dental” or the “Company”) in partnership with the management team and funds affiliated with Ares and Leonard Green.  Terms of the transaction were not disclosed.

Aspen Dental is a leading dental support organization that assists dentists in providing a unique healthcare delivery model focused on affordable, high-quality and comprehensive dental services.  The dentists supported by the Company served approximately 1.2 million patients in 2014 through 481 locations across 29 states.  With approximately 6,000 team members and supported doctors, Aspen Dental is one of the nation’s largest dental support organizations.

“We are proud of the tremendous care and compassion provided by the significantly growing number of dentists that Aspen Dental supports, and are excited about our new partnership with American Securities, a firm that we have known for over a decade, and the value they will bring to our commitment to be the leading dental support organization in the country,” said Bob Fontana, Chief Executive Officer.  “We are also grateful for our long-term partnerships with Ares and Leonard Green, as well as both firms’ continued commitment to the business.” 

 

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