‘Stellar’ quarter for mid-market PE deals
THE North West saw a ‘stellar quarter’ for mid-maket private equity deals in the first three months of 2011, according to business advisers KPMG.
Research from the firm reveals the number of high value private equity deals in the UK has doubled in the first three months of 2011, as activity in the sector bounced back after a weak final quarter of 2010.
During the first quarter of 2011, 38 larger UK MBO deals with total funding in excess of £10m were recorded, representing a 100% increase in volumes when compared with the 19 recorded for Q4 2010.
This change is the largest quarterly increase since the second quarter of 2009 and the highest number of deals recorded in a quarter since Q2 2008.
The North West was a particular hotbed for activity, with four major deals making headlines – tjhe msot sifgnificant being the £600m sale of Bolton-based Integrated Dental Holdings (IDH) Group to Carlyle.
Other major transactiosn were the £28m disposal of Advanced Childcare by Bowmark Capital; the £50m management buy-out of Fourth Hospitality backed by ECI Partners and the £43m acquisition of Sentinel Performance Solutions by Electra Partners.
John Hughes, head of KPMG’s private equity group in the North, said: “This really has been a stellar quarter for private equity activity in the North West.
“The good news is that all signs currently point towards this healthy flow of completions continuing over the coming months – we’re certainly undertaking a number of strategic reviews on behalf of organisations in the region looking at their options, and we’re also assisting a lot of companies undertake positive refinancings.”
