Equity Group Investments Announces Sale of Lanter Delivery Systems to Audax Private Equity
Equity Group Investments ("EGI"), the private investment firm founded by Sam Zell, has completed the sale of its portfolio company Lanter Delivery Systems, a market leader in specialized, time-critical delivery services, to Audax Private Equity ("Audax"). Terms of the sale were not disclosed.
Lanter Delivery Systems, based outside St. Louis, MO, provides overnight, unattended delivery services across the United States and Canada, and has a nationwide network of 120 hubs and forward cross-dock facilities across 48 states and makes over 13,000 stops a night. The company leverages this shared network to deploy time-critical solutions for original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) and dealerships across automotive, agricultural, heavy truck, and industrial markets.
Throughout the duration of EGI's investment, Lanter achieved significant growth through network, service offering, and geographic expansion. EGI's continued investments in technology, operations, and quality also strengthened Lanter's value proposition for customers and positioned the company for long-term growth.
"Our partnership with Steve and the entire Lanter team allowed us to collectively scale the business considerably over the past six years. We have greatly enjoyed working with them and look forward to seeing the team's continued success," commented Mark Sotir, President and Chief Investment Officer of Equity Group Investments.
"As Lanter's first source of outside capital, EGI provided invaluable resources and operational expertise that have positioned us for sustained growth. We're excited for this next chapter as we look to build on the momentum we've already established," added Steve Lanter, Founder and CEO of Lanter Delivery Systems.
J.P. Morgan served as lead financial advisor and Kirkland & Ellis LLP served as legal advisor to EGI. Jefferies also acted as a financial advisor. Ropes & Gray served as legal advisor to Audax on the transaction.
About Lanter Delivery Systems
Lanter Delivery Systems is a market leader in specialized, time-critical delivery services for automotive, agricultural, heavy truck, and industrial customers. For more information visit www.lanterdeliverysystems.com.
About Equity Group Investments
Equity Group Investments (EGI) is the private investment firm founded by Sam Zell in 1968. Backed by private capital, EGI is flexible and opportunistic with a focus on direct private investment opportunities but has the in-house expertise to invest across the capital structure. As a longer-term investor, EGI actively partners with portfolio company executives to execute strategic planning, implement operational efficiencies, and scale businesses. EGI has grown companies across numerous industries into multi-billion-dollar businesses throughout economic cycles. EGI's current portfolio includes investments in healthcare, transportation and logistics, infrastructure, energy, consumer, industrial, manufacturing, agri-business, and real estate. For more information, visit www.egizell.com.
About Audax Private Equity
Headquartered in Boston, with offices in San Francisco, New York, London and Hong Kong, Audax Private Equity manages three strategies: its Flagship and Origins private equity strategies, seeking control buyouts in the core middle and lower middle markets, respectively, and its Strategic Capital strategy that provides customized equity solutions to PE-backed portfolio companies to help drive continued growth. With approximately $19 billion of assets under management as of September 2024, over 280 employees, and 100-plus investment professionals, Audax has invested in more than 170 platforms and 1,350 add-on acquisitions since its founding in 1999. Through our disciplined Buy & Build approach, across six core industry verticals, Audax seeks to help portfolio companies execute organic and inorganic growth initiatives with the aim of fueling revenue expansion, optimizing operations, and significantly increasing equity value. For more information, visit www.audaxprivateequity.com or follow us on LinkedIn.
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