Lower Middle Market Weekly Outlook

Good morning, Forum readers. Yesterday, Jonathan Yates published an article claiming that private equity offers the best of capitalism. In short, he believes that “private equity groups increase shareholder value, add liquidity, offer greater resources and allow for more to invest in a wider range of assets.” It remains to be seen whether the SEC agrees with his analysis.

In other news, PE firms seem to be developing a taste for auto body shops. The appeal of roll-up plays and bargaining power with insurance firms has made the space a very attractive one for investors. Unsurprisingly, three of the four largest collision-repair companies are PE-backed. If you’re interested in the trend, check out our webinar from last week.

Transactions:

• The Riverside Company invests in Censis Technologies
• Huron Capital backs Bandit Industries
• Encore Consumer Capital invests in butter LONDON
• Milestone Partners acquires PayLink
• Behrman Capital refinances ILC Industries
• Great Hill Partners buys YogaWorks
• GenNx360 Capital buys Tooling Technology Holdings
• Riverwood Capital invests in Underground Solutions
• Consonance Capital closes $500 million health care fund
• Siris Capital acquires Junos Pulse from Jupiter Networks
• Rosser Capital Partners backs PetPeople
• Single Touch acquires DoubleVision Networks
• AK Steel to acquire Severstal Dearborn

Events:

• Early bird pricing for Axial Concord ends Thursday, July 31st

Opinions:

• How Warren Buffett views mergers & acquisitions
• PE-backed buyout exits jump in Q2
• Changing old antitrust thinking for a new gilded age
• Middle market executives report bullish 2014 outlook
• Why the time is right to sell a mid-market apparel company
• 5 things to consider when investing in private equity
• Private equity’s latest fix: Auto-body repair
• IPOs get bigger but leave less for public investors
• U.S. middle market companies are looking to hire
• Growth in middle market probably won’t make deal making any easier
• Why Polish private equity precedent could be dangerous
• Obama presses to close corporate tax loophole ‘inversions’
• ESOP candidates consider strategic buyers
• Private equity managers hope to benefit from trends in Asia

This week in history... The Buick Motor Company acquires the Cadillac Motor Company for $4.5 million (1909).