M&A Deal Summary

Harvest Partners and Lightyear Capital Acquire NFI Group

On February 2, 2004, private equity firms Harvest Partners and Lightyear Capital acquired automotive company NFI Group from KPS Capital Partners

Acquisition Highlights
  • This is Harvest Partners’ 1st and Lightyear Capital’s 1st transaction in the Automotive sector.
  • This is Harvest Partners’ 1st and Lightyear Capital’s 1st transaction in Canada.
  • This is Harvest Partners’ 1st and Lightyear Capital’s 1st transaction in Manitoba.
Investment Fate
  • NFI Group went public in 2005.

M&A Deal Summary

Date 2004-02-02
Target NFI Group
Sector Automotive
Buyer(s) Harvest Partners
Lightyear Capital
Sellers(s) KPS Capital Partners
Deal Type Secondary Buyout

Target

NFI Group

Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada
Entrance to New Flyer's headquarters in Winnipeg, Manitoba.
Entrance to New Flyer's headquarters in Winnipeg, Manitoba.
NFI Group, through its subsidiaries, including ​New Flyer Industries is a manufacturer of heavy-duty transit buses, offering a diverse range of sustainable transportation solutions including battery electric, fuel cell electric, hybrid-electric, compressed natural gas, and clean diesel buses. The Company operates multiple manufacturing facilities across Canada and the United States, producing its flagship Xcelsior® and Xcelsior CHARGE bus models. NFI Group was incorporated in 1895 and is based in Winnipeg, Manitoba.

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Buyer(S) 2

Buyer

Harvest Partners

New York, New York, United States

Investor Investor Investor Investor Investor


Category Private Equity Firm
Founded 1981
PE ASSETS 5.0B USD
Size Mega
Type Sector Agnostic
DESCRIPTION

Harvest Partners is a Investment firm provides Private Equity and Structured Capital focused on buyout, growth capital, minority position, and non-control investments in middle-market public and private companies. Harvest Partners looks to invest in profitable ($30 to $300 million of EBITDA). Sectors of interest include business services, consumer services, healthcare, industrial services, manufacturing, marketing, building products and distribution companies valued between $100 and $1000 million. The Firm prefers opportunities headquartered in North America. Harvest Partners was formed in 1981 and is based in New York City.


DEAL STATS #
Overall 6 of 71
Sector: Automotive M&A 1 of 1
Type: Secondary Buyout M&A Deals 2 of 35
State: Manitoba M&A 1 of 2
Country: Canada M&A 1 of 2
Year: 2004 M&A 1 of 4
PREVIOUS DEAL
DATE TARGET DEAL TYPE VALUE
2003-06-01 Coveright

Barcelona, Spain

Coveright is a provider of surfacing materials for applications in the furniture, flooring, woodworking and automotive industries. The company conducted manufacturing activities in Brazil, Canada, Germany, Spain, and the United States, with a worldwide sales presence. Coveright was founded in 1974 and is based in Barcelona, Spain.

Buy -
FOLLOWING DEAL
DATE TARGET DEAL TYPE VALUE
2004-05-01 Communications Supply

Carol Stream, Illinois, United States

Communications Supply Corporation is a value-added, nationwide distributor of cabling, connectivity and ancillary products needed for the construction and maintenance of advanced voice, data and video networks, security, fire, life safety and a multitude of other low voltage infrastructure applications.

Buy -
Buyer

Lightyear Capital

New York, New York, United States

Investor Investor Investor Investor Investor


Category Private Equity Firm
Founded 2000
PE ASSETS 4.1B USD
Size Large
Type Sector Focused
DESCRIPTION

Lightyear Capital is a specialist private equity firm that pursues brand-name businesses in the financial services sector. Lightyear looks for companies with stable, recurring revenues that operate in growing markets. Transaction strategies include leveraged buyouts, recapitalizations, restructurings and consolidations. Lightyear Capital was formed in 2000 and is based in New York City.


DEAL STATS #
Overall 6 of 46
Sector: Automotive M&A 1 of 1
Type: Secondary Buyout M&A Deals 1 of 16
State: Manitoba M&A 1 of 1
Country: Canada M&A 1 of 1
Year: 2004 M&A 1 of 1
PREVIOUS DEAL
DATE TARGET DEAL TYPE VALUE
2003-12-08 Alogent

Peachtree Corners, Georgia, United States

Alogent provides end-to-end payment processing, content management, digital banking, and loan origination technologies to financial institutions, currently including over 2,400 credit unions, community and regional banks, and some of the largest national and international institutions. Alogent was founded in 1995 and is based in Peachtree Corners, Georgia.

Buy -
FOLLOWING DEAL
DATE TARGET DEAL TYPE VALUE
2005-05-25 NAU Country Insurance Co.

Ramsey, Minnesota, United States

NAU Country Insurance Company specialized in the marketing, sale, and underwriting of crop insurance business in the Midwest and California. NAU primarily offered insurance through the federally-sponsored Multiple Peril Crop Insurance program.

Buy -

Seller(S) 1

SELLER

KPS Capital Partners

New York, New York, United States

Investor Investor Investor Investor Investor


Category Private Equity Firm
Founded 1991
PE ASSETS 21.8B USD
Size Mega
Type Sector Agnostic
DESCRIPTION

KPS Capital Partners is a private investment firm that targets special situations including turnarounds, restructurings, bankruptcies, and corporate divestitures. KPS' target investment size is $200 million to $2 billion in businesses with minimum revenues of $250 million. The Firm has specific interest in companies engaged in the manufacturing, transportation, and service industries. KPS will not consider investments in high technology, financial services, telecommunications, broadcast media, real estate and natural resources. The Firm's geographic coverage spans the US, Canada, and Europe. KPS Capital Partners was formed in 1991 and is based in New York, New York.


DEAL STATS #
Overall 2 of 36
Sector: Automotive M&A 1 of 5
Type: Secondary Buyout M&A Deals 1 of 11
State: Manitoba M&A 1 of 1
Country: Canada M&A 1 of 1
Year: 2004 M&A 1 of 1
PREVIOUS DEAL
DATE TARGET DEAL TYPE VALUE
2003-12-01 AmeriCast Technologies

Atchison, Kansas, United States

AmeriCast Technologies is a designer, manufacturer and supplier of high-engineered steel and iron castings and machined components for customers such as Caterpillar, General Electric and Electro-Motive.

Buy -
FOLLOWING DEAL
DATE TARGET DEAL TYPE VALUE
2005-09-01 HHI Group Holdings

Columbus, Indiana, United States

HHI Group Holdings, LLC ("HHI"), through its Jernberg Holdings, LLC, Impact Forge Group, LLC, HHI FormTech, LLC, Kyklos Bearing International, LLC (“KBI”) and Cloyes Gear and Products, Inc. subsidiaries, is the largest independent manufacturer of forged parts and a leading manufacturer of wheel bearings for the North American automotive industry and a leading supplier of powdered metal engine and transmission components for automotive and industrial customers worldwide.

Buy -