Market at a Glance

AEA Investors LLC held a final close on its third fund, AEA Mezzanine Fund III LP, at $575 million despite current weakness in mezzanine debt fundraising. The latest fund garnered about 40 percent more in commitments from institutional investors than its $420 million predecessor fund.

On the deals front, U.S.-based financial sponsors completed 383 transactions during the first quarter through March 28, according to Buyouts publisher Thomson Reuters. Those with disclosed financial terms totaled $22.4 billion. However, the past two weeks witnessed only four out of the 39 transactions disclosing their financial terms, worth about $271.7 million.

In the largest recent deal, Sun Capital Partners acquired Aclara Technologies LLC, a manufacturer of metering equipment from Inc ESCO Technologies Inc for $130 million in cash. Similarly, ECOSERV LLC, a holding of Lariat Partners LP, acquired the environmental services business of Newpark Resources Inc for an estimated $100 million in cash.