May River Capital announced that its portfolio company Hunt Valve has been acquired by Fairbanks Morse Defense, a portfolio company of Arcline Investment Management. No price was announced
May River Capital acquired Hunt Valve in 2015. Since that time, May River Capital and Hunt Valve management have driven substantial growth in the business through a combination of organic initiatives, supported by May River Capital’s continued investment in talent and physical capital projects, as well as the success of a targeted buy-and-build strategy leading to the integration of three complementary add-on acquisitions.
Today, Hunt Valve is a supplier of complex flow control solutions and electromechanical actuators to critical U.S. and Canadian Naval platforms.
May River Capital partnered with its executive resource Group member, Brad Sterner, at the time of the initial acquisition. Sterner first served as Hunt Valve’s CEO and later as its executive chairman and brought to the platform significant flow control experience from his tenure at several industrial companies.
“It has been a pleasure working with the Hunt Valve team and May River Capital to develop an industry leading supplier to the U.S. Navy and its prime shipbuilders,” Sterner said in a statement announcing the acquisition. “We are proud of what Hunt Valve has accomplished, and we look forward to its future under Fairbanks Morse Defense and Arcline Investment Management ownership.”
May River Capital also recruited Charles Ferrer to serve as chief executive officer of Hunt Valve. Ferrer and the balance of Hunt Valve’s senior leadership team will continue in their roles following the transaction. “Our excellent partnership with May River Capital over the last five plus years has not only fueled our growth but has also positioned us well for the next stage of development,” said Ferrer. “We have continued to focus on meeting customer expectations, particularly in handling the growth in our end market and focusing on quality and delivery. Our customers continue to be great partners and we are excited to be part of the Fairbanks Morse Defense and Arcline Investment Management team which will further improve our ability to bring the highest quality solutions to our customers.”
Harris Williams served as lead financial advisor to May River Capital in connection with the transaction, with Duff and Phelps providing additional financial advisory services. Paul Hastings served as legal advisor to May River Capital.
“The U.S. Navy’s fleet expansion and modernization requires well capitalized suppliers who can make the requisite human and physical capital investments to meet the U.S. Navy’s and prime shipbuilders’ needs,” said Steve Griesemer, partner at May River Capital. “By enhancing and professionalizing the core Hunt Valve business and acquiring three highly strategic add-ons, we are proud to have created a leading valve and actuator supplier to support the U.S. Navy’s objectives. We are certain that Fairbanks Morse Defense and Arcline Investment Management are the right partners for Hunt Valve’s leadership to continue that growth.”
