Yellow Wood agrees to acquire Holistic Health from Nestlé for $1bn; KSE’s acquisition of LA Angels adds to pro sports team deal flurry
Good morning, PE Hubsters! Rafael Canton here with you for the US edition of the Wire.
We’ll begin with a deal from the vitamins, minerals and supplements sector. Yellow Wood Partners has agreed to acquire VMS platform Holistic Health from Nestlé for $1 billion. We’ll look at that acquisition as well as some other recent deals in the sector.
Then we look at pro sports dealmaking – which has had a busy week. Kroenke Sports and Entertainment has agreed to acquire the Los Angeles Angels of the MLB. PE Hub has been tracking recent deal activity in the sector.
Leveraging brands
As consumers look to improve their nutrition and wellness, private equity firms are seeking deals in the vitamins, minerals and supplements sector. Let’s look at a deal from Tuesday afternoon. Yellow Wood Partners has agreed to acquire Holistic Health from Nestlé for $1 billion.
Headquartered in Switzerland with US headquarters in New Jersey, Holistic Health’s portfolio of established brands includes Nature’s Bounty, Osteo Bi-Flex and Gard. The business generated sales of $1.2 billion last year.
“The Holistic Health portfolio provides a group of specialty category leaders in various high growth sectors of the attractive VMS market, including hydration, gut health and immunity,” Dana Schmaltz, partner at Yellow Wood, said in a statement. “Operating Holistic Health as a standalone entity will provide the opportunity to leverage the power of each brand to accelerate growth, enhance innovation and strengthen their market positions with consumers and retail partners.”
In August, L Catterton agreed to sell Thorne to Procter & Gamble for $3.8 billion in cash. Based in Summerville, South Carolina, Thorne is a provider of supplements. L Catterton acquired Thorne in 2023.
In another August deal, Riverside Company-backed Western Botanicals invested in Yellow Emperor, a liquid dietary supplement developer and manufacturer based in Eugene, Oregon. The deal was Western Botanicals’ first add-on.
In May, Avista Healthcare Partners and Damier Group agreed to acquire Sanotact, a German vitamins, minerals, and supplements platform.
PE Hub reporter John R Fischer looked at private equity’s interest in nutraceuticals businesses in August.
Sports flurry
It’s been a busy stretch of months for dealmaking involving professional sports teams. And with team valuations continuing to grow, the deals are not stopping anytime soon. On Tuesday, Kroenke Sports and Entertainment announced that it has agreed to acquire a controlling stake in Major League Baseball’s Los Angeles Angels team. The seller is the Moreno family.
Led by Stan Kroenke, KSE also owns the Los Angeles Rams of the National Football League, the Denver Nuggets of the National Basketball Association and the Colorado Avalanche of the National Hockey League. The deal has yet to close and is subject approval by the MLB.
On Monday, David Shuman agreed to acquire a minority ownership stake in the New York Islanders of the NHL. According to a release, the investment will not result in any changes to the team’s day-to-day operations, front office leadership, or hockey operations.
Shuman is the founder of Lateralus Holdings. Based in New York, Lateralus is a venture capital firm that invests in high-growth technology companies. The VC fund counts Oura and webAI among its investments.
I’ve been tracking pro sports team deals involving individual investors and private equity firms. Here are a couple of notable deals from private equity firms this year.
The flurry of sports deals and the increase in valuations reflects the growth of the business of sports. The interest in live entertainment, the increase in the role of technology in sports, and the scarcity of available assets are a few of the factors driving investors to pursue pro sports teams.
“There has been always an imbalance between the passion for sports and what the business of sports is,” Don Cornwell, co-founder and CEO at Dynasty Equity, told me in May. “If I look back 10 years ago and I look at the revenues and the values, and I compare that to how much people care about sports, there’s a massive imbalance. We’re slowly starting to get more in-balance, where the business models are catching up to that level of passion.”
That’s it for me. If you have any questions, thoughts, or want to chat about deals in the tech, consumer or sports sectors, please email me at rafael.c@pei.group
Tomorrow, Craig McGlashan will be with you for the Europe edition of the Wire, while Obey Martin Manayiti will be filling in for Michael Schoeck for the US edition.
Cheers,
Rafael
