Our investment criteria support solid partnerships and successful transactions.
Chartwell typically makes equity investments ranging in size from $25 to $200 million and we will consider transactions requiring larger equity components. The companies in which we invest have strong management teams, sound business models and meaningful growth prospects.
Chartwell will consider investments in virtually any industry, although we avoid most venture capital and high technology investments. We also prefer negotiated transactions as opposed to auctions, providing us with the time and diligence necessary to design a business plan for the future. Our firm’s primary geographic focus for investments is the United States, although international investments are considered if there is a U.S. element to the business and strong local partner participation.
Our investment criteria include:
The company
- an entrepreneurial and proven management team
- significant opportunities for operating profit growth
- leading competitive position and market share
- stable cash flow
- product and/or market diversification
Financial characteristics
- target EBITDA of $10 - $50 million
- transaction sizes of $25 million - $500 million
- smaller companies which can be acquired as part of a predetermined plan to consolidate a fragmented industry
- control buyouts, minority or growth equity, recapitalizations and restructurings
- cyclical businesses
Chartwell has particular interest in:
- general industrial / manufacturing
- energy and natural resources
- infrastructure-related products and services
- building products
- chemicals
- distribution and business services
- selected branded consumer or commercial products
In addition, we have an industrial holding company and are interested in businesses with EBITDA of $2-$10 million. We maintain the same investment philosophy for these opportunities as outlined above.
“We had gone to two or three other private equity firms, competitors of Chartwell. I walked away from those other firms with some concerns about how we would operate as partners. Chartwell was different, and the more that I worked with them, the more professional, more focused, more thorough I found them to be.”
Mark Skolnik,
senior executive,
Exxon Mobil Corporation