Deals

3M (NYSE: MMM) has completed the sale of its Asia-Pacific pharmaceutical operations to Ironbridge Capital and Archer Capital (both of Australia) for $349 million.

Advantage Partners, a Japanese private equity firm, has agreed to acquire the financial businesses of Livedoor Co. for approximately $151 million.

Advent International has acquired Grupo La Mansion, an operator of casual dining restaurants in Mexico. No pricing terms of the all-equity transaction were disclosed. Javier Gavilan, who recently worked with Advent portfolio company Aerocomidas, will take over as Grupo La Mansion CEO.

AIG Global Investment Group has agreed to purchase six port terminals for DP World of Dubai. No financial terms were disclosed, although the asking price was reported to have been around $700 million. DP World acquired the assets earlier this year, via its $6.8 billion purchase of U.K.-based Peninsular & Oriental Steam Navigation Company, but was convinced to sell after the idea of a Dubai-based company owning U.S. ports sparked a political furor in the States.

Airport Management & Investment Ltd. has completed its sale of the London City Airport to AIG Financial Products and Global Infrastructure Partners, an infrastructure-focused joint partnership between Credit Suisse and GE Infrastructure. No financial terms were disclosed for the deal, which included leveraged financing arranged by The Royal Bank of Scotland and Credit Suisse. London City Airport is located in East London (Royal Docks in Newham), offers flights to 27 destinations within Europe and is the U.K.’s third-largest corporate aviation facility.

Apax Partners and Texas Pacific Group have abandoned plans to sell Greek mobile operator TIM Hellas, and will instead try selling €1.4 billion of additional debt, according to Dow Jones. Leading bidder Eutelsat had withdrawn its interest.

Arca Capital Group has agreed to invest approximately $55 million to reconstruct the so-called Slovak Therapeutic Spas (SLK) in the town of Trencianske Teplice.

Arcapita has invested $68 million to acquire and merge 3P Delivery Inc. and General Transportation Services Inc., which both are asset-light providers of last-mile logistics services of heavy goods for major retailers in the U.S. Fortress Credit Corp. provided debt financing for the combined transaction, while EVE Partners served as financial advisor to 3P Delivery and Source Cos. served as financial advisor to GTS.

Asia Capital Holding, pan-Asian reinsurance startup based in Singapore, has raised $620 million from 3i Group and Khazanah Nasional Berhad (Malaysian government investment arm). 3i contributed approximately $200 million, while Morgan Stanley served as ACH’s exclusive placement agent.

Blackstone Group and Texas Pacific Group may make bids to acquire the Indian wireless assets of Hutchison Telecommunications International Ltd. (NYSE: HTX), according to The Wall Street Journal. A sale could be valued at $8 billion, including assumed debt.

Blue Horizon Organic Seafood Co., an Aptos, Calif.-based supplier of branded and private-label seafood from environmentally-sustainable sources, has raised an undisclosed amount of private equity funding from Greenmont Capital Partners.

Blue Wolf Capital Management has agreed to acquire Pittsburgh-based landfill gas developer Montauk Energy Capital LLC from DQE Financial Corp., a subsidiary of Duquesne Light Holdings Inc. The deal is valued at approximately $110 million, and is expected to close by year-end. GoldenTtree Asset Management has agreed to provide senior financing.

Bruckmann, Rosser, Sherrill & Co. has completed its buyout of restaurant chain Logan’s Roadhouse Inc. for an undisclosed amount. Other members of the buyout consortium included Canyon Capital Advisors and Black Canyon Capital and company management. Logan’s had been in registration for a $350 million IPO, but formally withdrew the filing earlier this week.

Butler Capital Partners has agreed to acquire the European industrial fibers business of Rhodia SA for an undisclosed amount.

Campbell Alliance Group Inc., a Raleigh, N.C.-based management consulting firm for the pharma and biotech markets, has raised an undisclosed amount of growth equity from Baird Capital Partners.

The Carlyle Group and Chinese power distributor State Grid Corp. reportedly have partnered on a bid for the National Transmission Corp., the Philippines’ government-owned power grid. Other bidding groups include: Newbridge Capital and Tenaga Nasional (Malaysia); and Terna (Italy) and Citadel Holdings (Philippines). The bids are expected to come in at between $2.5 billion and $3 billion.

The Carlyle Group reportedly has paid approximately $121 million to acquire 110 villa units in the Minhang District of Shanghai, China.

Catalina Marketing Corp. (NYSE: POS) has retained Goldman Sachs, in response to an “unsolicited expression of interest from a third-party private equity firm with respect to the acquisition of the company.”

Catalyst Investors of New York has acquired Aplus.net, a San Diego-based provider of website presence solutions, including domain registration services, web hosting, dedicated server hosting, web design and web marketing services to approximately 90,000 small- and medium-sized businesses. No financial terms were disclosed. Gabriel Murphy, co-founder of CommuniTech.Net (sold to Web.com in 2002) will take over as CEO. SG Capital advised Aplus.net on the sale.

CCMP Capital Asia has agreed to acquire Repco Corp., the largest retailer of car parts in Australia and New Zealand. The deal is worth Au$336 million, or Au$1.75 per share in cash.

Cerberus Capital Management is in talks to acquire 12 U.S. plants of bankrupt auto-parts maker Delphi Corp., according to Bloomberg.

Cerberus Capital Management reportedly is the lead bidder for Collins & Aikman‘s automotive carpeting and soft trim business. No financial terms were reported, except that the division generates around $750 million in annual sales.

Deere & Co. (NYSE: DE) confirmed that it has been approached by a private equity firm about a possible buyout offer, but adds that management does not expect such a deal to happen.

Diamond Castle Holdings has completed its acquisition of customer relationship services company PRC LLC from IAC/InterActiveCorp (Nasdaq: IACI). No financial terms were disclosed for the deal, which was done in partnership with PRC management.

Doughty Hanson & Co. has agreed to acquire Spanish bus and bus station operator Avanza. No financial terms were disclosed for the deal, which is expected to close next month. This is Doughty Hanson’s first private equity investment in Spain.

Dubai International Capital reportedly is in talks with Liverpool Football Club and Athletic Grounds PLC about a potential investment. The British football club is estimated to be worth around £450 million.

EMI Group may be nearing an agreement to be acquired by Permira. This follows an earlier Times of London report claiming that the music publisher would not accept any buyout offers for less than 350 pence per share. That same report claimed that Permira was offering 310 pence per share.

Empower RF Systems Inc., an Inglewood, Calif.-based provider of ultra-broadband radio frequency amplifiers has received a minority investment from Summit Partners.

Franklin Electric Co. Inc. (Nasdaq: FELE) has sold its Bluffton, Ind.-based Engineered Motor Products Division to CapitalWorks LLC of Cleveland. No financial terms were disclosed. Evarts Capital advised Franklin Electric on the deal. Harrah’s Entertainment Inc. reportedly received a sweetened buyout bid from Apollo Management and Texas Pacific Group. The revised offer of $87 per share (from $83.50), would value the total deal at $15.5 billion.

Freescale Semiconductor Inc. has completed its $17.6 billion public-to-private acquisition by The Blackstone Group, The Carlyle Group, Permira and Texas Pacific Group.

Fremont Partners and Texas Pacific Group have agreed to acquire Nashville, Tenn.-based insurance company Direct General Corp. (NasdaqGS: DRCT). The total transaction price is $628.2 million (including leverage), with Direct General shareholders to receive $21.25 per outstanding share (28.71% premium to the previous day’s closing price). SunTrust Robinson Humphrey served as financial advisor to the special committee of Direct General’s board of directors in connection and provided a fairness opinion to Direct General, while Bear, Stearns acted as financial advisor to Fremont and TPG.

Friend Skoler & Co. has invested in Accessories Marketing Inc., a manufacturer and marketer of flat tire prevention and repair products. No financial terms were disclosed. Company management also participated in the equity tranche, as did senior note leader CIT. National City Equity Partners provided subordinated notes.

Gannett Co. (NYSE: GCI) is considering a sale of its U.K. newspaper unit Newsquest, according to The Sunday Express. The unit could fetch up to £1.5 billion.

GO Ethanol has raised $145 million in combined equity and debt financing. Paladin Capital Group’s Homeland Security Fund led the equity tranche, while the debt syndication was led by SunTrust Robinson Humphrey. The funding will be used to complete construction and provide operations and maintenance funding for its 54 million gallon ethanol production facility in Lima, Ohio, to be operated by GOE Lima.

Hellman & Friedman and Texas Pacific Group have completed their public-to-private acquisition of Intergraph Corp. (Nasdaq: INGR), a Huntsville, Ala.–based provider of spatial information management (SIM) software. The deal is valued at $1.3 billion, with Intergraph shareholders receiving $44 per share. Goldman Sachs advised Intergraph, while Morgan Stanley advised H&F and TPG.

Hicks Holdings LLC and The Watermill Group have jointly acquired Latrobe Specialty Steel Co. (f.k.a. Timken Latrobe Steel) from The Timken Co. (NYSE:TKR). The deal is valued at $215 million in cash, plus $35 million in assumed liabilities.

Independent Insurance Investments Inc., an auto insurance portfolio company of Inverness Management, has completed its acquisition of the Omni Insurance Group from The Hartford Financial Services Group Inc. (NYSE:HIG). No financial terms were disclosed for the deal, for which almost all of the equity was provided by Inverness and its limited partners.

Independent Living Services Ltd., a Scotland-based provider of acute domiciliary care, has acquired Home Concern (Scotland) Ltd. No financial terms were disclosed for the deal, which was partially financed by ILS backers ISIS Equity Partners and Bank of Scotland.

International Automotive Components Group North America has agreed to acquire Lear Corp.’s North American Interior Systems Division. IAC is a joint venture between WL Ross & Co., Franklin Mutual Advisers and Lear. Upon closing, Lear will transfer all of the assets of its North American interiors business and $25 million of cash to IAC, while WL Ross and Franklin Mutural will collectively contribute $75 million of cash and extend a $50 million term loan to IAC NA. Lear will hold 25% of the stock in IAC NA and warrants for an additional 7% equity interest. The operations being acquired by IAC include 26 plants located in the United States, Canada and Mexico with a combined revenue of approximately $2.5 billion.

International Coal Group (NYSE: ICG) denied that it is considering going private. In a press release, the company said: “While it normally does not comment on rumors, and it intends to continue this policy, the company has become aware of specific newswire reports of rumors of a management leveraged buyout. International Coal Group denies these rumors.”

KRG Capital Partners has recapitalized portfolio company Varel International, a Carrollton, Texas-based supplier of drill bits for the oil, gas and mining industries. Apollo Investment Corp. led the recap’s $115 million in senior unirate loan and junior subordinated notes, with American Capital Strategies also participating. Varel also structured a $10 million asset-based revolver with Fifth Third Bank, while KRG maintains its majority ownership.

Leonard Green & Partners has agreed to sponsor an $847 million recapitalization of Gaithersburg, Md.-based commercial landscaping company Brickman Group Ltd., according to a regulatory filing. Leonard Green will provide $222 million in equity, with Lehman Brothers arranging a $350 million term loan and $50 million revolving credit facility. TCW/Crescent Mezzanine will provide $225 million in subordinated notes and $50 million in equity. CIVC Partners currently holds a 36% position, while the remainder is held by the founding Brickman family and company management. The Deal reports that CIVC and company management will reinvest around $250 million for a 48% stake.

Lone Star Funds has increased the amount it will pay to buy Lone Star Steakhouse & Saloon Inc. (Nasdaq: STAR) from $27.10 per share to $27.35 per share.

Linsalata Capital Partners has recapitalized Wellborn Forest Products Inc., an Alexander City, Ala.-based maker of semi-custom hardwood cabinets for the residential market throughout the eastern United States. No financial terms were disclosed for the deal, which was done in partnership with Wellborn president and CEO Tim Wellborn.

Local Insight Media LLC, a provider of print directories and Internet-based local search services in Alaska and the Caribbean, has agreed to merge with CBD Media LLC, a publisher of the Cincinnati Bell-branded yellow pages. The deal will result in Local Insight owner Welsh, Carson, Anderson & Stowe owning a majority of the combined company, with CBD backer Spectrum Equity Investors retaining a “substantial minority stake.” No financial terms were disclosed, except that the combined company will have consolidated annual revenues of approximately $200 million.

Macquarie Bank and Texas Pacific Group are expected to bid up to $8.4 billion for Australian airline company Qantas Airways, according to The Wall Street Journal.

McClatchy Newspapers Inc. (NYSE:MNI) has no plans to go private, according to a speech given by company CEO Gary Pruitt at the Media Week conference in New York.

MediaWhiz, a New York-based provider of performance-based online marketing services, has acquired Online Media Promotions LLC (a.k.a. Monetizeit), an Atlanta-based provider of online lead generation. No financial terms were disclosed for the deal, which was partially financed by existing MediaWhiz shareholder Lake Capital.

Meritain Health Inc., an Amherst, N.Y.–based provider of health plan management services, has acquired Westport, Conn.-based health services holding company CBSA Performax. No financial terms were disclosed, except that goldman Sachs arranged financing. Meritan Health is a division of Caxton-Iseman portfolio company Prodigy Health Group.

MidOcean Partners has acquired a majority stake in various companies that comprise the Europackaging Group, a U.K.-based manufacturer, distributor and consolidator of packaging products and other goods not for resale. No financial terms were disclosed. Following completion of the transaction, Bill Ronald, formerly U.K. managing director of Mars Confectionery and CEO of Uniq PLC will join Europackaging as chairman, and Attila Balogh, who previously ran the international businesses of Tchibo, will become CEO.

NGBI Private Equity has sponsored a £14 million buyout of Change Recruitment Group, a Scotland-based recruitment consultancy focused on professionals in the financial services, investment, legal, distribution and logistics markets.

PAI Partners has agreed to buy the Roofing unit of Lafarge SA (NYSE: LR) for €1.96 billion in cash and €420 million in assumed debt and pension liabilities.

Palm Beach Capital has acquired Atlas Paper Mills, a Hialeah, Fla.-based manufacturer of tissue paper made from 100% recycled waste paper. No financial terms were disclosed.

Pay by Touch, a San Francisco-based provider of biometric authentication solutions, has acquired S&H Solutions and its parent company S&H Greenpoints for more than $100 million in cash and stock. S&H Solutions is a provider of customer-based loyalty marketing and retail solutions. Pay By Touch shareholders include Och-Ziff Capital Management, Farallon Capital Management, Getty Trusts, Ron Burkle and Rembrandt Ventures.

Rank Group PLC has agreed to sell the Hard Rock Café restaurant chain to the Seminole tribe of Florida for $965 million. Merrill Lynch is providing financing. Numerous buyout firms had been interested in the deal.

Raytheon Co. (NYSE: RTN) is in advanced talks to sell its Raytheon Aircraft Co. unit to Onex Corp. and Goldman Sachs. The company had retained Credit Suisse in July to explore “strategic alternatives” for the unit, and reportedly has received bids from Onex, The Carlyle Group and Cerberus Capital Management. The unit is expected to be valued at between $2.75 billion and $3.25 billion.

The Riverside Company has acquired Medic First Aid International Inc., a Eugene, Ore.-based provider of CPR and first-aid emergency care training programs. No financial terms were disclosed.

Rockwood Holdings Inc. (NYSE: ROC) has agreed to sell its Groupe Novasep subsidiary to a consortium that includes Gilde Buyout Partners BV, Banexi Capital and Groupe Novasep management. The deal values Groupe Novasep at approximately €425 million, and is expected to close within 60 days. Groupe Novasep specializes in the production of active pharmaceutical ingredients, developing new purification processes and large-scale chromatography.

RoundTable Healthcare Partners has completed its purchase of Bioniche Life Sciences Inc.‘s 10% ownership stake in Bioniche Pharma Group Ltd. RoundTable concurrently made a further equity investment in the company to support growth initiatives. Financial terms of the BLSI purchase and RoundTable’s incremental equity investment were not disclosed.

Setanta Sport Holdings Ltd., an Ireland-based international sports broadcaster, has raised €315 million in private equity financing from Doughty Hanson, Goldman Sachs, Davy Stockbrokers and Adams Street Partners. The infusion will be used to launch new U.K. services, including Setanta Golf in January 2007 and coverage of the FA Premier League from August 2007. Overall control of Setanta will not change, with Doughty Hanson and Benchmark Capital Europe being the largest institutional shareholders following completion of the deal.

Station Casinos Inc. (NYSE: STN) has received an $82 per share buyout offer led by Colony Capital and company management. The total deal would be valued at approximately $4.7 billion.

Steve & Barry’s University Sportswear, a Port Washington, N.Y.-based casual apparel retailer, has received a minority investment from TA Associates.

Tennenbaum Capital Partners has completed its acquisition of Radnor Holdings Corp., a Radnor, Pa.–based provider of foodservice products like expandable polystyrene. The company will be renamed WinCup Inc.

Thompson Street Capital Partners has agreed to acquire three electrical distributors — Connecticut Electric & Switch Manufacturing Co., Tacoma Electric Supply and Parallax Power Supply — from majority shareholder Randy Mauermann. No financial terms were disclosed.

UBS and Socios Financieros have narrowed down the auction finalists for Spanish theme park operator Parques Reunidos, according to Expansion. They are Apax Partners, Candover, Cinven and U.K.-based theme park operator Tussauds. The deal is expected to be worth more than €800 million.

WestView Capital Partners has sponsored a recapitalization of TriTech Software Systems, a San Diego-based provider of public safety software solutions. No financial terms were disclosed. TriTech founder and CEO Chris Maloney will continue to be majority shareholder, while WestView will hold a minority ownership position.

WL Ross & Co. has completed its acquisition of BST Safety Textiles GmbH, a manufacturer of flat and one-piece woven fabrics for automotive air bags as well as narrow fabrics for seat belts and military and technical uses. BST operates facilities in southern Germany, Poland and Virginia, with approximately 1,250 people worldwide. No financial terms were disclosed.