PE Weekly: M&A Roundup Nov. 6-12

Platform Investments

Gladstone Acquires Majority Stake in McFarlane Toys. Business development company Gladstone Investment Corporation acquired a majority stake in McFarlane Toys, a designer, producer, and distributor of licensed collectible action figures. The business partners with entertainment studios, sports organizations, video game publishers, and others to develop products.

Marlin Equity Backs Insight Assurance. Marlin Equity Partners, a global investment firm focused on technology and tech-enabled services, made a strategic growth investment in Insight Assurance. The deal represents the first institutional capital for the provider of independent cybersecurity audit and assurance services.

Broadwing Acquires Supply Side. Broadwing Capital, a lower middle-market private equity firm focused on manufacturing and services, acquired Supply Side, a distributor of packaging materials and hardware to self-storage and parcel-shipping operators. The acquisition serves as the launchpad for Broadwing’s specialty distribution platform.

TSCP Invests in Kinneberg Management. Middle-market private equity firm Thompson Street Capital Partners (TSCP) completed a growth investment in Kinneberg Management Group. The company is a retail commerce enablement provider for consumer brands.

H.I.G. Capital Acquires go asia. Private capital firm H.I.G. Capital announced it reached an agreement to acquire a majority stake in go asia, an Asian Food retail chain based in Germany. The company’s founding family will retain ownership in the business.

Add-ons

Coalesce’s Marshall & Stevens Acquires Baumann Moreau. Coalesce Capital-backed Marshall & Stevens, a valuation advisory, transaction consulting, and litigation support firm, acquired Baumann Moreau, a provider of business valuation, forensic accounting, and expert witness litigation services. The add-on expands Marshall & Stevens’ litigation support practice in Florida and adds referral relationships across complementary valuation service lines.

Strategics

Craveworthy Brands Acquires Papa Gino’s Parent NEAE. Craveworthy Brands, a multi-brand restaurant platform, agreed to acquire New England Authentic Eats, the parent company of Papa Gino’s Pizzeria. Craveworthy plans to introduce its Wing It On! brand across Papa Gino’s locations.

Mubadala Acquires Minority Stake in LSV Advisors. Mubadala Capital, the alternative asset management subsidiary of Mubadala Investment Company, agreed to acquire a strategic minority interest in LSV Advisors. The investment manager focuses on GP-led, single-asset continuation vehicles in the middle market. LSV manages about $5 billion in assets and commitments, and the investment adds dedicated GP-led secondaries capabilities to Mubadala Capital’s strategic partnerships platform.

Exits

Grant Avenue Exits Ovation Healthcare. Grant Avenue Capital, a middle-market private equity firm focused on the healthcare sector, completed the sale of Ovation Healthcare to Parkview Health, a nonprofit health system. Ovation Healthcare provides revenue cycle management, IT, spend management, and leadership advisory services to hospitals and health systems. Grant Avenue first acquired the company in 2021 through a carve-out from Quorum Health Corporation.

Quad-C Exits Boulder Scientific to Iron Path. Iron Path Capital, a private equity firm focused on chemicals businesses that sell to highly regulated end markets, acquired Boulder Scientific Company, a manufacturer of specialty chemicals and high-performance organometallic compounds. Iron Path acquired the company from private equity firm Quad-C Management.

Princeton Equity Exits Five Star Franchising to LLCP. Levine Leichtman Capital Partners (LLCP) announced it acquired Five Star Franchising, a home-services franchisor with eight brands and more than 870 locations. LLCP acquired the company from its previous sponsor Princeton Equity Group.

Rotunda Exits American Equipment to DFW Capital. Rotunda Capital Partners has sold American Equipment Solutions, a provider of overhead crane, below-the-hook equipment, and MRO services. DFW Capital Partners acquired the company, which Rotunda first acquired in 2021.

Fundraising

Aldaron Raises $950 Million. Transformation equity firm Aldaron closed its oversubscribed debut fund at its hard cap, raising $950 million in total commitments. The firm’s Fund I debuts its investment thesis of making control investments in businesses and embedded AI engineering teams that develop and implement technology for those portfolio companies.