Olympus Up To $2.2B On Fund VI; Close To Finish

The Stamford, Conn.-based firm, which invests in both growth equity and leveraged buyouts, is still waiting on two prior investors to decide on commitments that could bring in another $80 million to $90 million to the fund, our source said. In light of a recycling provision that lets the firm re-invest up to 15 percent of the fund, the firm has about $2.5 billion in “investable” capital, our source said. Investors in the fund include the New York State Teachers’ Retirement System and Virgina Retirement System.

Olympus Partners recently appeared on Preqin’s list of the most consistent top private equity performers, and publicly available performance data shows why. According to backer Massachusetts Pension Reserves Investment Management Board, the firm’s 1998 third fund has to date generated an IRR of 15.1 percent as of year-end and its 2003 fourth fund an IRR of 9.2 percent. Its 2007 vintage fund has done even better, generating an IRR of 26.3 percent as of last Sept. 30 for Regents of the University of California.

Led by Managing Partners Robert S. Morris and Louis J. Mischianti, Olympus Partners tends to invest from $20 million in growth equity deals up to $300 million or more in buyouts. The firm, which lists six other partners on its website, looks to back strong management teams of marketing-leading companies across six industry sectors: business services, financial services, software and IT services, healthcare manufacturing and services, logistics and transportation services and consumer and restaurants.

Among its most recent transactions, the firm announced in June that portfolio company the Waddington Group Inc, a Covington, Kentucky-based manufacturer of upscale tableware for restaurants, delis and bakeries, had acquired Par-Pak Ltd, a Toronto-based maker of restaurant, bakery and produce packaging.