HM Capital Partners
Dallas, Texas, United States | |
Key people | John Muse, Co-founder |
---|---|
Products | Leveraged buyouts, Growth capital |
Website | hmcapital.com |
HM Capital Partners was a private equity firm in the United States that specialized in leveraged buyouts. The firm was previously known as Hicks, Muse, Tate & Furst. It was founded in 1989 by Tom Hicks and John Muse as Hicks, Muse & Co. and was changed in 1994 to reflect the roles of Charles Tate and Jack Furst.
History
Hicks & Haas
The son of a
Hicks & Haas' biggest coup was its mid-1980s acquisition of several soft drink makers, including Dr Pepper and 7 Up. The firm took Dr Pepper/7 Up public just 18 months after merging the two companies. In all, Hicks & Haas turned an $88 million investment funding into $1.3 billion. The pair split up in 1989; Hicks wanted to raise a large pool to invest, but Haas preferred to work deal by deal.[1] Robert Haas went on to form Haas Wheat & Partners a middle market private equity firm based in Dallas.[2]
Hicks, Muse, Tate & Furst (HMTF)
Hicks raised $250 million in 1989 and teamed with former Prudential Securities banker John Muse to form Hicks Muse. Early investments included Life Partners Group (life insurance, 1990; sold 1996). In 1991 Morgan Stanley's Charles Tate and First Boston's Jack Furst became partners.
As part of its buy-and-build strategy, Hicks Muse bought DuPont's connector systems unit in 1993, renamed it Berg Electronics, added six more companies to it, and doubled its earnings before selling it in 1998. Not every acquisition was successful for Hicks Muse. Less-than-successful purchases included bankrupt brewer G. Heileman Brewing Company of La Crosse, Wisconsin, bought in 1994 and sold two years later for an almost $100 million loss.
The buyout firm's Chancellor Media radio company went public in 1996. That year Hicks Muse gained entry into Latin America with its purchases of cash-starved Mexican companies, including Seguros Commercial America, one of the country's largest insurers. That year also brought International Home Foods (Jiffy Pop, Chef Boyardee) into the Hicks Muse fold.
In 1997 Chancellor and Evergreen Media merged to form Chancellor Media (renamed AMFM in 1999). The next year Hicks Muse continued buying US and Latin American media companies, as well as a few oddities (a UK software maker, a Danish seed company, and US direct-seller Home Interiors and Gifts). Hicks Muse and Kohlberg Kravis Roberts merged their cinema operations to form the US's largest theater chain, Regal Cinemas. Regal would file for bankruptcy protection in 2001. The company that year also moved into the depressed energy field (Triton Energy) and formed a $1.5 billion European fund. They also invested $400 million into Teligent, Inc., a fixed wireless telecommunications carrier. Teligent filed for bankruptcy in 2001 and is now defunct.
Acquisitions in 1999 included UK food group Hillsdown Holdings, one-third of Mexican
Hicks Muse, along with UK-based
Hicks Muse acquired
Acquisitions in 2004 included Kerns Oil & Gas (renamed Blackbrush Energy --
In May 2005,
HM Capital and Successors
Hicks Muse struggled in the years immediately following the bursting of the
Tom Hicks resigned from Hicks Muse at the end of 2004 and was replaced at the helm by co-founder John Muse. Hicks would go on to found Hicks Holdings LLC. Charles Tate resigned from Hicks Muse in 2002.[8]
In January 2005, the company's European arm, separated from Hicks Muse to form Lion Capital LLP, which has since raised over $4 billion across two private equity funds.
In March 2006, Hicks Muse Tate & Furst changed its name to HM Capital reflecting the departure of
In 2013, HM Capital began dissolving. The energy group spun out as Tailwater Capital and the food group spun off as Kainos Capital.[11][12]
References
- ^ "Business Secrets of a Lion Tamer". D Magazine. 2013. Retrieved 2021-10-05.
- ^ "Private Equity Investor and Wildlife Photographer Robert Haas Delivers Leaders Forum Lecture on Navigating Life in Financial Sector". Yale School of Management. 2010-01-08. Retrieved 2021-10-05.
- ^ Hicks Muse dons Jimmy Choos(The Deal, 2004)
- ^ Even the Smartest Money Can Slip Up (New York Times, 2001)
- ^ Will He Star Again In a Buyout Revival (New York Times, 2003)
- ^ Forbes Faces: Thomas O. Hicks (Forbes, 2001)
- ^ An LBO Giant Goes "Back to Basics" (BusinessWeek, 2002)
- ^ Parting Thoughts from an LBO Hotshot (BusinessWeek, 2002)
- ^ A different name for Hicks Muse (Dallas Morning News, 2006)
- ^ Deal Journal Remember Hicks Muse? They're Back (Sort of) (WSJ.com, 2007)
- ^ Bounds, Jeff (2013-03-19). "HM Capital energy group spins out as Tailwater Capital". Dallas Business Journal. Retrieved 2015-04-19.
- ^ Jacobius, Arleen (2013-06-10). "End may be near for zombie private equity funds". Pensions & Investments. Retrieved 2015-04-19.