Morgan Keegan's Investment Banking Group has established relationships with both domestic and international strategic buyers.
Case Studies
The Answer Group
The Answer Group was acquired by Teleperformance. Based in North Lauderdale, Fla., The Answer Group is a leading provider of business process outsourcing services. Founded in 1994, the company offers inbound technical support, customer service and sales to a customer base that includes several prominent, high technology, Fortune 200 companies. The company owns and operates two state-of-the-art facilities in Florida and Louisiana and has established a dynamic platform designed to meet the full array of technical support needs for its customers.
Teleperformance, headquartered in Paris, France, is a global leader in the market of outsourced contact centers, managing sales, customer service, technical support and accounts receivable for more than 1,000 companies worldwide. Teleperformance has operations in 46 countries and conducts programs in approximately 66 different languages and dialects.
Extreme CCTV
In February 2008, Extreme CCTV Inc. was acquired by Robert Bosch GmbH (“Bosch”). Extreme is a leading provider of active infrared (“IR”) illuminators and precision engineered closed-circuit television (“CCTV”) surveillance products. The company is recognized as an industry expert in the development and production of imaging solutions for use in harsh and challenging environments. The company’s products are targeted to serve five rapidly growing markets affected by escalating security threats worldwide: defense, homeland security, critical infrastructure, transportation and facilities. Since its inception in 1997, the company has achieved ten consecutive years of revenue growth as well as successfully acquired and integrated two acquisitions, Derwent Systems Ltd. and Forward Vision CCTV Ltd., which have broadened the company’s product portfolio and geographic presence.
Bosch, through its various subsidiaries, supplies technology and services in the areas of automotive and industrial technology, consumer goods and building technology worldwide. Bosch is headquartered near Stuttgart, Germany. Extreme will operate within its Bosch Security Systems division.
MicroStar Logistics
MicroStar Logistics, Inc. and its affiliate Global Asset Management, Inc. (“MicroStar”) were acquired by Macquarie Group Limited. MicroStar is a rapidly growing, leading provider of outsourced mobile asset management solutions. The company revolutionized the craft beer industry by creating and managing the largest third-party pool of beer kegs in the United States. MicroStar manages and provides reverse logistics for a shared-fleet of over 600,000 kegs that it leases on a per-use basis through long-term contracts to over 120 of the nation’s estimated 400 craft brewers. The company also leases and offers sophisticated tracking and tracing technologies for managing a fleet of over 60,000 intermediate bulk containers (“IBCs”) that are used for transporting synthetic rubber or food ingredients.
MicroStar is a subsidiary of TrenStar, Inc., which after this divestiture, is primarily a provider of software solutions for tracking and tracing mobile assets. TrenStar is owned by Trencor, a South Africa-based freight marine cargo leasing and management company; Carlyle Venture Partners, the venture arm of The Carlyle Group; and several other investors.
The Macquarie Group is a diversified international provider of banking, financial, advisory and investment services, head-quartered in Sydney, Australia.
Houston Harvest
Houston Harvest, Inc., an affiliate of Blackstreet Capital Partners, LP, was acquired by Signature Brands, LLC. Signature Brands, LLC is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Hero AG, based in Lenzburg, Switzerland. The transaction closed on August 22, 2008. Morgan Keegan acted as exclusive financial advisor to Houston Harvest and Blackstreet Capital Partners, LP.
Headquartered in Franklin Park, Ill., Houston Harvest is a leading designer, manufacturer, and distributor of filled popcorn tins and is the only vertically-integrated provider of popcorn tins in the United States. From its 489,000-square foot manufacturing and warehouse facility, the company operates the world’s largest popcorn poppers in addition to five popcorn tin production lines. The company’s product themes include seasonal designs as well as licensed company logos, professional sports teams and a variety of games and toys. Houston Harvest sells its products primarily through mass retail and retail drug channels, including many of the nation’s top retail chains.
HJ Foundation
HJ Foundation, Inc. was acquired by Keller Group plc. HJ Foundation, Inc. is a highly specialized provider of deep foundation construction services. Deep foundations are required when the concentrated load of a building cannot be supported by the surface soil. The company specializes in augered pile construction, vibro-compaction, and excavation shoring, with an emphasis on complex construction challenges. To date, the company has completed approximately 1,600 projects ranging from hotels, office towers, and high-rise condominiums to large-scale municipal structures and industrial facilities.
Keller Group plc provides ground engineering and refurbishment solutions for the construction industry. Its services include ground improvement techniques, grouting, piling, post-tension cable systems, and structural restoration. The company’s services are used in infrastructure, building, civil engineering, and structural renovation contracts in Europe, North America, and Australia. Keller Group plc is based in London.
ENCO
Enco Materials, Inc. was acquired by Gerdau Ameristeel Corp. Enco is a leading value-added distributor of commercial construction materials in the Southeastern United States. The company’s products include fabricated reinforcing steel, concrete and masonry accessories, concrete forming and shoring equipment, fabricated structural steel and architectural products. Headquartered in Nashville, Tenn., the company serves the non-residential and highway and public works construction markets through its network of eight wholesale distribution centers. Enco’s customers include highway and public works contractors, specialty subcontractors, ready mix suppliers and building supply companies. The company serves some of the most attractive regions of the Southeastern U.S., including Northwest Arkansas, Central Arkansas, West Tennessee, Middle Tennessee (covering Alabama and portions of Kentucky), East Tennessee, the Tri-Cities region of East Tennessee (including western portions of North Carolina, West Virginia and Virginia) and Southwest Georgia (including Northern Florida).
Gerdau Ameristeel Corp. is headquartered in Porto Alegre, Brazil.
