Houlihan Lokey Advises Merfish United

Houlihan Lokey is pleased to announce that Merfish United, a portfolio company of One Equity Partners (OEP), has been acquired by Reliance Steel & Aluminum Co. (NYSE:RS) (Reliance). The transaction closed on October 1, 2021.

Merfish United is a leading master distributor of tubular building products in the United States. Headquartered in Ipswich, Massachusetts, the company serves 47 U.S. states through its 12 strategically located distribution centers. Merfish United’s broad product offering includes full lines of steel pipe, copper tubing, plastic pipe, electrical conduit, and related products for the commercial, residential, municipal, and industrial building markets. For the 12 months ended June 30, 2021, Merfish United’s net sales were approximately $500 million.

Founded in 1939 and headquartered in Los Angeles, California, Reliance Steel & Aluminum Co. is a leading global diversified metal solutions provider and the largest metals service center company in North America. Through a network of approximately 300 locations in 40 states and 13 countries outside of the United States, Reliance provides value-added metals processing services and distributes a full line of over 100,000 metal products to more than 125,000 customers in a broad range of industries. Reliance focuses on small orders with quick turnaround and increasing levels of value-added processing.

One Equity Partners is a middle-market private equity firm focused on the industrial, healthcare, and technology sectors in North America and Europe. The firm builds market-leading companies by identifying and executing transformative business combinations. OEP is a trusted partner with a differentiated investment process, a broad and senior team, and an established track record generating long-term value for its partners. Since 2001, the firm has completed more than 300 transactions worldwide. OEP, founded in 2001, spun out of JP Morgan in 2015. The firm has offices in New York, Chicago, Frankfurt, and Amsterdam.

Houlihan Lokey served as the exclusive sellside advisor to Merfish United and assisted in marketing, structuring, and negotiating the transaction on behalf of the company.