Happy Friday!
This is Karishma Vanjani with your latest PE deal updates, filling in for Chris, who's probably fishing while reading a great spy novel. In the wee small hours of this morning, two US PE firms announced high value deals – both with German companies. Zooplus, one of the largest online pet supplies retailers in Europe, announced a $3.5 billion takeover from US private equity firm Hellman & Friedman. Quickly following the news, EQT Private Equity said it will sell cybersecurity platform Utimaco to asset manager SGT Capital in a deal valued at $500 million, as reported by Bloomberg. In the case of H&F, the firm will focus on evolving Zooplus' position in the European pet category. Zooming out, pet product retailers and manufacturers have been witnessing a growing demand from private equity firms. Just yesterday, Kainos Capital announced the acquisition of Muenster Milling, a Texas-based pet food and ingredient manufacturer. The deal activity can be attributed to the increase in pet ownership alongside underlying trends like the upscaling of pet food and supplies. Read the Reuters pickup brief about the deal on PE Hub.
Cybersecurity news: EQT's decision to sell Utimaco for $550 million comes after almost a five-year-long hold. The firm bought the company in 2016 and has since then executed five add-ons in the US, UK, Spain, and Germany and tripled its revenues, according to EQT's press release on PE Hub. Just yesterday, Warburg Pincus announced its investment in a provider of cybersecurity and compliance solution, A-LIGN. Another notable cybersecurity deal this month was by Audax Private Equity in Team Cymru.
Read the full wire commentary on PE Hub...
That’s it for today! Have a great weekend, and as always, write to me at karishma.v@peimedia.com with any feedback, tips, gossip or just to say hello.
