Houlihan Lokey Advises Capewell Aerial Systems
Houlihan Lokey is pleased to announce that the Aerial Delivery & Descent Devices Business of Capewell Aerial Systems (Capewell), a portfolio company of Argosy Private Equity, has been acquired by HEICO Corp. (NYSE: HEI.A and HEI). The transaction closed on August 22, 2024.
Connecticut-based Capewell is a leading provider of proprietary aircraft cockpit emergency egress and aerial delivery products for various commercial aerospace and defense uses. It is a critical supplier to a wide-ranging customer base that includes leading OEMs, end users, and distributors. Capewell’s highly engineered product portfolio encompasses emergency descent devices, personnel and cargo parachute products, heavy airdrop platforms, and other highly engineered products.
Argosy Private Equity, founded in 1990, is a lower-middle-market private equity firm dedicated to growing and professionalizing U.S. manufacturing and business services companies, often family or founder-owned. For over 30 years, Argosy Private Equity has partnered with more than 135 investments, focusing on companies with $3 million to $10 million of EBITDA and substantial potential to grow. Argosy manages a diverse portfolio across six funds and more than $1 billion in assets under management as of March 31, 2024.
HEICO Corp. is engaged primarily in the design, production, servicing, and distribution of products and services to certain niche segments of the aviation, defense, space, medical, telecommunications, and electronics industries through its Hollywood, Florida-based Flight Support and Electronic Technologies Groups. HEICO’s customers include a majority of the world’s airlines and overhaul shops, as well as numerous defense and space contractors and military agencies worldwide, in addition to medical, telecommunications, and electronics equipment manufacturers.
Houlihan Lokey served as the exclusive financial advisor to Capewell. This transaction exemplifies the continued success of Houlihan Lokey’s Aerospace & Defense practice within the engineered solutions segment of the supply chain. Since 2020, the team has closed more than 70 transactions worth over $12 billion in enterprise value. With a staff of approximately 20 investment banking professionals, Houlihan Lokey’s Aerospace & Defense practice is among the largest dedicated industry banking groups worldwide. In 2023, Houlihan Lokey’s Industrials Group was ranked as the No. 1 M&A advisor for global industrials transactions under $1 billion, according to LSEG (formerly Refinitiv).*
*Excludes accounting firms and brokers.
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