How can Newport Acquisitions Services, LLC, help me explore the opportunity that private equity firms present?
Newport Acquisition Services, LLC, differs from most other mergers and acquisitions firms, investment bankers, and business brokers. Although NAS offers traditional seller representation, we specialize in representing buyers/investors, in particular private equity firms. These buyers utilize NAS’s services to identify acquisition opportunities for them. Because of NAS’s close working relationships with most of the premier private equity firms in North America, we are able to quietly and efficiently introduce your company to those investor firms that are the most appropriate. Ours is not an auction process but a precise matchmaking function. This simple but effective approach offers control, eliminates fees to brokers or intermediaries for the seller, and ensures exposure to a select number of very strong and experienced buyers.

What type of transactions can NAS help facilitate for me?
NAS can help private companies seeking outright sales in order to execute exit strategies, as well as companies seeking growth equity, recaps and other structures that would result in the ownership/management remaining in partnership with the investing private equity firm. Most transactions involve the transfer of ownership control, although, in some cases, NAS is able to facilitate significant minority control transfers.

What size companies do NAS’s private equity clients seek?
NAS identifies both new portfolio company opportunities and add-on acquisition opportunities for its private equity firm clients. In terms of new portfolio companies, generally the companies will have revenues between $10 and $100 million with cash flow of at least $2 million. However, for add-on acquisitions (when the private equity firm already owns a strategically complimentary company), companies can be significantly smaller if the strategic fit is strong. In general, NAS introduces healthy companies to its buyer clients, as opposed to companies in distress.

How about industries and geography?
NAS works with many, many private equity buyers, each of which employs different investment strategies. As such, they have somewhat different appetites in terms of industry, size parameters, and geography. In aggregate, however, there are only a handful of areas that aren’t attractive to our clients: early stage opportunities, real estate deals, and precious metals.

What will it cost me to work with NAS?
Nothing. NAS is representing the buyer/investor unless mutually agreed upon otherwise.

I want to explore this further. Where do we start?
We suggest that the first step be assessing whether your company would make an attractive investment opportunity for our private equity clients. Generally, NAS can make that determination very quickly based on a review of the company website or brochures, plus some basic financial information, i.e. historical revenues and profitability, and an understanding of your objectives in a potential transaction. NAS can also offer its informal opinion regarding the value range for your company.  As our buyers generally compensate us only for closed transactions, we have little reason to artificially inflate anyone’s expectations.

Assuming we determine there would be interest, then, only with your permission, NAS can approach specific private equity firms with a blind introduction. After mutual interest is confirmed, we recommend that a confidentiality agreement be executed to lend comfort to beginning an initial dialog, sharing additional information, facilitating site visits and so forth.

Who should I talk to?
Matthew Lerner is the President of NAS and can be reach at 800.820.2668 (toll free)
410.720.5220 (in Maryland)
and via email at mlerner@nas1.com.