Sentinel closes on $319m buyout fund

Sentinel Capital Partners closed their third small buyout fund on $319 million (€243 million), surpassing its original $225 million target.

Sentinel Capital Partners III is the firm’s largest fund, bringing its capital under management to approximately $500 million.

Fundraising took less than nine months, according to a press release. The investors include Abbott Capital Management, AlpInvest, Allstate, Macquarie Bank, the Metropolitan Museum of Art, Oak Hill Capital Management, Pacific Corporate Group and Western Australia Public Sector Investors. A number of high-net-worth individuals and family offices have also invested in the fund.

“We had an exceptional year in 2004 that allowed us to return more than $200 million to our investors over a 10-month period and we continue to build on that momentum this year,” said John McCormack, a co-founder and senior partner at the firm, in a statement.

Over the past 15 months, the firm has realized its investments in a number of portfolio companies, including the nation’s second largest transmission repair shop chain Cottman Transmission Systems, Houston, Texas-based dental service provider Castle Dental Centers and garden product manufacturer Floral Plant Growers. In February, it took yarn manufacturer Spinrite public in a C$203 million ($164 million) IPO after owning it for a year.

Sentinel closed their first fund in 1996. Sentinel Capital Partners II closed in 1999 on $126 million. The firm specializes in investing in companies in the business services, consumer products, food industry and niche marketing sectors with $5 million to $15 million in operating profit.