KKR acquires landscaper Brickman from Leonard Green for $1.6 bln

• KKR outbid rivals, including TPG, Blackstone

• Investment comes from KKR’s North American Fund XI

• Leonard Green bought company in 2007 for $847 mln

KKR outbid other private equity firms in the auction for Brickman, including TPG Capital LP and Blackstone Group LP, sister news service Reuters reported earlier, citing two people familiar with the matter.

The investment is being made by KKR North American Fund XI and other funds managed by KKR, the private equity firm said in a statement.

Barclays Capital and Morgan Stanley served as financial advisers to Brickman, and Latham & Watkins LLP and Dechert acted as legal advisers.

Credit Suisse was financial adviser for KKR, while Simpson Thacher & Bartlett served as legal adviser.

The transaction is expected to close by year end.

Gaithersburg, Maryland-based Brickman tends to the gardens of offices, campuses, hotels, shopping centers, healthcare facilities, industrial parks and homes, looks after trees, removes snow and maintains sports turf across 29 states.

Leonard Green acquired a majority stake in Brickman in January 2007, in an $847 million deal in which members of the Brickman family and the company’s management retained equity interests, according to Reuters. The buyout firm committed $222 million of equity to the deal, according to a November 2006 regulatory filing.

Scott Brickman, whose grandfather founded the eponymous company in 1939, stepped down as chief executive last year after 14 years at the helm to become its chairman. He succeeded his father Dick, who became chairman emeritus.

Andrew Kerin, a former senior executive at Aramark Corp, another private equity-backed company, took over as CEO.

Greg Roumeliotis is a reporter for Reuters News in New York

Additional reporting by Buyouts

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