Lincoln Road Finds First Deal in Pro-Tec Fire & Safety – Wall Street Journal: Private Equity

August 08, 2018

Lincoln Road Global Management sealed its inaugural deal, investing in a provider of fire extinguishers and safety services.

Under Lincoln Road, Pro-Tec Fire & Safety Inc. will look for acquisition opportunities and strengthen its operations. The Loganville, Ga., company supplies fire extinguishers, kitchen fire suppression systems and emergency lighting, as well as provides fire-protection and inspection services for the Atlanta metro area.

“It’s a space we’ve been interested in,” said Jeff Magny, founder and managing partner of Lincoln Road. The fire-safety sector is fragmented with a strong cash-flow profile, said Mr. Magny, adding the space is less cyclical given that it is driven by state-specific codes.

Mr. Magny, a former executive of Sun Capital Partners who started his career with the mergers-and-acquisitions group at JPMorgan Chase & Co., formed Lincoln Road in 2015. The Miami firm is investing on a deal-by-deal basis with a focus on the lower midmarket, but plans to raise its institutional fund when the time is appropriate. It wants to make a couple more platform investments before marketing the fund, Mr. Magny said.

Lincoln Road invests across the industrial, consumer, retail and business-services sectors, backing companies with sales of $20 million to $150 million and earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization of at least of $3 million, said Mr. Magny, who declined to elaborate further. The firm consists of four executives.

Other private-equity transactions in the fire-safety space include CI Capital Partners-backed Summit Cos.’ acquisition of assets from Koorsen Fire & Security Inc. this year; and Gryphon Investors’ purchase of a majority stake in Potter Electric Signal Co. last year.

Go to article at Wall Street Journal here: https://www.wsj.com/articles/lincoln-road-finds-first-deal-in-pro-tec-fire-safety-1533726001