Bethesda, MD., - American Capital Strategies, an investment bank with specialties in middle market financings and ESOP-structured corporate transactions, today announced the successful completion of its initial public offering. The offering raised $136,000,000, in a sale of 9,122,000 shares at $15 per share. All of the proceeds of the offering will be retained by ACS to finance the senior debt, subordinated debt, and equity of small and medium sized and employee-owned companies. Together with anticipated associated lines of credit, ACS will have a total of $300 million available for investment.
The Company will be traded on NASDAQ under the symbol ACAS.
Over the past few years, ACS has structured 24 successful buyouts of manufacturing units and service businesses from such sellers as Sunbeam Corporation, Air Products and Chemicals, Penn Central Corporation, Gencorp, Campbell Soup and PPG. While the company has taken ownership positions in eight of these transactions, it has relied on its ability to raise financing on a deal-by-deal basis to complete the transactions.
"Our core group of senior professionals has now been working together for a decade. As a result of our recently completed public offering, we will be able to move swiftly and surely to finance and close buyout transactions using our own capital which in the past might have taken months of coordination of financing sources," said ACS President Malon Wilkus. "We will also consider providing capital to finance growth opportunities and liquidity for private owners in successful middle market companies."
ACS's main office is located at 3 Bethesda Metro Center, Suite 860, Bethesda, Maryland 20814. The company's phone number is (301) 951-6122. ACS also has offices in New York, San Francisco, Boston, Pittsburgh, and Savannah, Georgia.
David Gladstone, formerly Chairman and CEO of Allied Capital, has joined ACS as Chairman. Other directors include Robert Allbritton, Executive Vice President of Allbritton Communications, Adam Blumenthal, Executive Vice President and CFO of ACS, Landon Butler, President of Landon Butler and Company, Neil Hahl, President of the Weitling Group and formerly Senior Vice President of Penn Central Corporation, Philip Harper, President of US Investigations Services, Stan Lundine, of Counsel to Sotir and Goldman and formerly Lieutenant Governor of the State of New York, Steven Walko, President of Textileather Corporation, and Mr. Wilkus.
A registration statement relating to these securities has been filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission. These securities may not be sold nor may offers to buy be accepted prior to the time the registration statement becomes effective. This press release shall not constitute an offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer to buy, nor shall there be any sale of these securities in any state which such offer, solicitation or sale would be unlawful prior registration or qualification under the securities laws of any state.
The managing underwriter for the offering was Friedman, Billings, Ramsay & Company. Copies of the prospectus can be obtained from Friedman, Billings, Ramsay & Company, 1001 19th Street, North, Arlington, Virginia 22209, (703) 312-9500.
