On The Block

Morton’s Restaurant Group Inc. authorized the review of strategic alternatives. The decision to consider the possible sale of the steakhouse restaurant chain has the support of its largest shareholders: Castle Harlan Inc. and Laurel Crown Partners LLC. Chicago-based Morton’s hired Jefferies & Co. as a financial adviser to help with the review of options. Morton’s owned and operated 77 Morton’s steakhouses worldwide. It has locations in 26 U.S. states and in Puerto Rico. The company has restaurants in six international locations (Hong Kong, Macau, Shanghai, Mexico City, Singapore and Toronto).

Lawson Software Inc. hired Barclays Capital to advise the St. Paul, Minn.-based software maker’s review of the company’s possible sale, Reuters reported on March 8 citing two people familiar with the process. The review could include other alternatives. The sources said prospective buyers could include Infor, which is backed by Golden Gate Capital, as well as tech giants like Hewlett-Packard Co. and IBM Corp. For the fiscal second quarter ended Nov. 30, Lawson Software’s total revenue rose to $187.5 million from $184.4 million a year earlier. The company generated higher revenue from maintenance services during the latest period.

GreenMan Technologies Inc. plans to sell its molded recycled rubber product subsidiary. The Lynnfield, Mass.-based company’s board decided to divest Green Tech Products Inc. in order to concentrate on its dual fuel conversion business. GreenMan received board authorization to start looking for potential buyers or to start evaluating other strategic alternatives. For the fiscal year ended Sept. 30, GreenMan’s net sales fell to $2.57 million from $3.23 million a year earlier on lower playground tile and equipment sales in Midwestern and Western regions of the United States.

Culane Energy Corp.’s board authorized the evaluation of strategic alternatives at the energy company. The review will look into the possible sale of assets or of the entire company. It will also assess the possibility of a merger or other business combination. The company hired FirstEnergy Capital Corp. as a financial adviser to help with the process. Culane Energy explores for, develops and produces oil and natural gas in Alberta and Saskatchewan, Canada.