Investcorp acquired a stake in US seafood and gourmet food distributor Fortune International, as the Bahraini asset manager continues to diversify its portfolio of investments in the country.
Fortune International's chief executive Sean O’Scannlain, who founded the company in 2001, will continue to lead and maintain a "significant" ownership stake, Investcorp said, without giving the value or the size of stake bought. Investment bank Houlihan Lokey advised Fortune on the deal.
"Our partnership with Fortune is in line with our investment strategy of investing in companies that have a robust track record and potential for continued growth," Yusef Al Yusef, managing director at Investcorp for Abu Dhabi and Kuwait markets, said on Wednesday. "Fortune's positioning as a leading specialty distributor of seafood and gourmet food products makes it the ideal partner for us."
The latest transaction is Manama-based Investcorp's fifth partnership over the past two yearswith a US founder-led business. Previous examples of its investment in the supply chain and distribution industries include Berlin Packaging, FleetPride and American Tire Distributors.
Fortune distributes fresh and frozen seafood and gourmet foods, offering more than 12,000 stock-keeping units (SKUs) to fine-dining restaurants, grocery stores and hotels, primarily across the Midwest region in the US. The company has expanded its geographic footprint by acquiring specialty distributors in strategic markets.
"Investcorp is the ideal firm to serve as our first institutional capital partner, given their deep understanding of the food-service distribution market ... and their strong track record of scaling businesses," Mr O'Scannlain said. "With the support of Investcorp’s resources and expertise, Fortune will be well positioned to execute on management’s growth strategy.”
Fortune operates a distribution centre in Bensenville, Illinois, close to Chicago’s O’Hare International Airport, which facilitates deliveries of products across key Midwestern markets. The company also operates facilities in Minneapolis, Minnesota; St. Louis, Missouri; Kansas City, Missouri; Bayou La Batre, Alabama; Birmingham, Alabama and Picayune, Mississippi.
Earlier this month, Investcorp reported a 17 per cent decline in net income in the first half of its financial year to December 31, but said its assets under management increased despite a subdued global economy and a rise in geopolitical tensions.
Net profit for the six-month period dropped to $48 million (Dh176m). The company, which counts Abu Dhabi’s Mubadala Investment Company as its biggest shareholder, said assets under management increased by $3 billion to $31.1bn during the reporting period.
Company%20profile
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SUNDAY'S ABU DHABI T10 MATCHES
Northern Warriors v Team Abu Dhabi, 3.30pm
Bangla Tigers v Karnataka Tuskers, 5.45pm
Qalandars v Maratha Arabians, 8pm
The specs
Price: From Dh180,000 (estimate)
Engine: 2.0-litre turbocharged and supercharged in-line four-cylinder
Transmission: Eight-speed automatic
Power: 320hp @ 5,700rpm
Torque: 400Nm @ 2,200rpm
Fuel economy, combined: 9.7L / 100km
The%20specs
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EEngine%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%206.4-litre%20V8%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ETransmission%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E8-speed%20auto%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EPower%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E470bhp%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ETorque%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E637Nm%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EPrice%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EDh375%2C900%20(estimate)%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EOn%20sale%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20now%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
SPECS
%3Cp%3EEngine%3A%20Supercharged%203.5-litre%20V6%0D%3Cbr%3EPower%3A%20400hp%0D%3Cbr%3ETorque%3A%20430Nm%0D%3Cbr%3EOn%20sale%3A%20Now%0D%3Cbr%3EPrice%3A%20From%20Dh450%2C000%0D%3Cbr%3E%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
The specs
Engine: Two permanent-magnet synchronous AC motors
Transmission: two-speed
Power: 671hp
Torque: 849Nm
Range: 456km
Price: from Dh437,900
On sale: now
Director: Romany Saad
Starring: Mirfat Amin, Boumi Fouad and Tariq Al Ibyari
The specs
Engine: 4.0-litre flat-six
Torque: 450Nm at 6,100rpm
Transmission: 7-speed PDK auto or 6-speed manual
Fuel economy, combined: 13.8L/100km
On sale: Available to order now
Libya's Gold
UN Panel of Experts found regime secretly sold a fifth of the country's gold reserves.
The panel’s 2017 report followed a trail to West Africa where large sums of cash and gold were hidden by Abdullah Al Senussi, Qaddafi’s former intelligence chief, in 2011.
Cases filled with cash that was said to amount to $560m in 100 dollar notes, that was kept by a group of Libyans in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso.
A second stash was said to have been held in Accra, Ghana, inside boxes at the local offices of an international human rights organisation based in France.
Our Time Has Come
Alyssa Ayres, Oxford University Press
South Africa v India schedule
Tests: 1st Test Jan 5-9, Cape Town; 2nd Test Jan 13-17, Centurion; 3rd Test Jan 24-28, Johannesburg
ODIs: 1st ODI Feb 1, Durban; 2nd ODI Feb 4, Centurion; 3rd ODI Feb 7, Cape Town; 4th ODI Feb 10, Johannesburg; 5th ODI Feb 13, Port Elizabeth; 6th ODI Feb 16, Centurion
T20Is: 1st T20I Feb 18, Johannesburg; 2nd T20I Feb 21, Centurion; 3rd T20I Feb 24, Cape Town
Tips for taking the metro
- set out well ahead of time
- make sure you have at least Dh15 on you Nol card, as there could be big queues for top-up machines
- enter the right cabin. The train may be too busy to move between carriages once you're on
- don't carry too much luggage and tuck it under a seat to make room for fellow passengers
Points tally
1. Australia 52; 2. New Zealand 44; 3. South Africa 36; 4. Sri Lanka 35; 5. UAE 27; 6. India 27; 7. England 26; 8. Singapore 8; 9. Malaysia 3
