PHILADELPHIA, Nov. 18, 2015 /PRNewswire/ — Franklin Square Capital Partners, the largest manager of business development companies (BDCs), announced the origination of a new senior secured loan and equity co-investment to help finance the acquisition by Audax Private Equity (Audax), a leading private equity investment firm, of Justrite Manufacturing Co., LLC (together with related vehicles, Justrite). Headquartered in Des Plaines, IL, Justrite is a leading designer and manufacturer of safety products used in the handling and storage of flammable and hazardous liquids.
The financing was provided by FS Investment Corporation (NYSE: FSIC),FS Investment Corporation II (FSIC II) and FS Investment Corporation III(FSIC III). All are BDCs managed by affiliates of Franklin Square and sub-advised by GSO / Blackstone Debt Funds Management LLC (GDFM), an affiliate of GSO Capital Partners LP (GSO).
“This transaction is indicative of our ability to provide customized financing solutions to leading middle market companies that also provide economic upside with credit protections to our investors. In addition, we are pleased to again partner with a proven sponsor like Audax,” said Michael C. Forman, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of FSIC, FSIC II and FSIC III.
“Justrite has a diverse product portfolio and customer base. Coupled with its steady growth and stable cash flow generation, we think this represents another strong investment opportunity for the Franklin Square BDC portfolios,” said Brad Marshall, Senior Managing Director at GSO.
Specific terms of the financing were not disclosed.
About Franklin Square
Franklin Square is a leading manager of alternative investment funds designed to enhance investors’ portfolios by providing access to asset classes, strategies and asset managers that typically have been available to only the largest institutional investors. The firm’s funds offer “endowment-style” investment strategies that help construct diversified portfolios and manage risk. Franklin Square strives not only to maximize investment returns but also to set the industry standard for best practices by focusing on transparency, investor protection and education for investment professionals and their clients.
Founded in Philadelphia in 2007, Franklin Square quickly established itself as a leader in the world of alternative investments by introducing innovative credit-based income funds, including the industry’s first non-traded BDC. As of September 30, 2015, the firm managed approximately $17.0 billion in total assets, including $15.7 billion in BDC assets, making it the largest manager of BDCs. For more information,please visit www.franklinsquare.com.
For information about FSIC, please visit www.fsinvestmentcorp.com.
For information about FSIC II and FSIC III, visit www.franklinsquare.com.
Contact Information:
Franklin Square Media Team
media@franklinsquare.com
215-495-1174
Jim Ballan
Senior Vice President,
Investor Relations & Capital Markets
james.ballan@franklinsquare.com
267-439-4375
About Blackstone and GSO
Blackstone is one of the world’s leading investment firms. We seek to create positive economic impact and long-term value for our investors, the companies we invest in, and the communities in which we work. We do this by using extraordinary people and flexible capital to help companies solve problems. Our asset management businesses, with over $300 billion in assets under management, include investment vehicles focused on private equity, real estate, public debt and equity, non-investment grade credit, real assets and secondary funds, all on a global basis. Blackstone also provides various financial advisory services, including financial and strategic advisory, restructuring and reorganization advisory and fund placement services.Further information is available at www.blackstone.com. Follow Blackstone on Twitter @Blackstone.
GSO Capital Partners LP is the global credit and distressed investment platform of Blackstone. With approximately $80.8 billion of assets under management (as of September 30, 2015), GSO is one of the largest alternative managers in the world focused on the leveraged-finance, or non-investment grade related, marketplace. GSO seeks to generate attractive risk-adjusted returns in its business by investing in a broad array of strategies including mezzanine debt, distressed investing, leveraged loans and other special-situation strategies. Its funds are major providers of credit for small and middle-market companies and they also advance rescue financing to help distressed companies.
About Audax Group
Audax Group is an alternative asset management firm specializing in investments in middle market companies. With offices in Boston, New York, and Menlo Park, Audax has over $6 billion in assets under management across its Private Equity, Mezzanine, and Senior Debt businesses. Audax Private Equity invests in control acquisitions of lower-middle market companies across a select group of industries, and pursues a Buy & Build strategy that transforms smaller companies into strategic assets.For more information, please visit www.audaxgroup.com.
Forward-Looking Statements and Important Disclosures
This press release may contain certain forward-looking statements, including statements with regard to the future performance or operations of FSIC, FSIC II, FSIC III or Justrite. Words such as “believes,” “expects,” “projects” and “future” or similar expressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements are subject to the inherent uncertainties in predicting future results and conditions. Certain factors could cause actual results to differ materially from those projected in these forward-looking statements, and some of these factors are enumerated in the filings FSIC, FSIC II and FSIC III make with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. FSIC, FSIC II and FSIC III undertake no obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.
Individual investors and endowments may have different investment horizons, liquidity needs and risk tolerances. In addition, fees that may be incurred by an investor in a fund sponsored by Franklin Square may be different than fees incurred by an endowment investing in similar assets as those in which the funds invest.
SOURCE Franklin Square Capital Partners
