BOSTON and HARTFORD, Conn., April 8 /PRNewswire/ -- Advent International and Conning Capital Partners today announced the acquisition, in partnership with management, of Long Term Care Group Inc. (LTCG), the nation’s leading provider of outsourced services to the long-term care insurance industry. The transaction, valued at $130 million, included $75 million in equity financing, of which Advent provided $46 million, Conning Capital $23 million, and management $6 million. Merrill Lynch Capital led the senior debt financing, and Northwestern Mutual provided subordinated debt.
Founded in 1996, LTCG is the only company offering a complete range of outsourced services -- including application processing, underwriting support, policy administration, claims processing and care management -- to long-term- care insurance carriers. The company has built a market-leading position and a strong base of blue-chip clients, with a 100% contract renewal rate. LTCG administers policies covering approximately 600,000 lives, or about 10% of the total in-force lives in the long-term care insurance industry.
With the aging of the US population and low market penetration relative to other insurance products, the growth potential for the long-term-care insurance sector is significant. Currently there are an estimated 82 million Americans over the age of 45. Of this group, only 6.5 million have long-term care insurance. This number is expected to triple by 2010 as the baby boomers age and purchase long-term-care insurance to protect their wealth against rising health-care costs.
Commenting on the transaction, Bob Taylor, a Partner in Advent’s US buyout group, said, “LTCG is a pioneer in a rapidly expanding sector. The company is poised for continued growth as health-care costs continue to rise and the baby boomer population ages. It should also benefit from the growing trend toward outsourcing in the insurance industry, as insurers try to keep up with the demand for this product.”
Michael Aspinwall, a Partner at Conning Capital, said, “LTCG is a very well-managed company with a strong contract-based recurring revenue model, high customer switching costs and significant operating leverage. We are backing the founding executives and look forward to supporting them as they continue to build the business.”
LTCG’s management is led by Ted White, Chief Executive Officer, Peter Goldstein, Executive Vice President of Business Development, John Goldstein, Chief Operating Officer, and Doug Heller, Chief Financial Officer. These executives have an average of over 25 years of senior management experience and were the pioneers in the outsourced administration of long-term care insurance.
“Many people erroneously believe that the government or their health insurance will cover the costs of long-term care,” said Mr. White of LTCG. “In reality, Medicare covers only a small percentage of long-term care, and Medicaid will pay for only nursing home or limited home care services for people with very few assets.”
In connection with the transaction, Messrs. Taylor and Aspinwall have joined LTCG’s board of directors, along with Chris Pike, a Partner at Advent, and Kim Kovalski, a Principal with Conning Capital.
About Advent International
Advent International is one of the world’s largest private equity firms, with $6 billion in cumulative capital raised and offices in 13 countries across North America, Europe, Latin America and Asia Pacific. Since its founding in 1984, Advent has been committed to helping management teams build successful businesses by applying its industry expertise, international resources and local market knowledge. Over 130 of Advent’s portfolio companies have completed IPOs on major stock exchanges worldwide. Its portfolio companies have raised more than $10 billion through public equity and debt offerings. For more information, visit http://www.adventinternational.com/.
About Conning Capital Partners
Conning Capital Partners, a private equity firm, is a prominent investor in financial services and healthcare services. Its main areas of investment include banking and finance, insurance, capital markets, healthcare services and employee benefits, as well as supporting services and technology enterprises within these industries. With approximately $600 million currently under management, Conning Capital Partners is a leading source of capital for high-growth entrepreneurial companies in these sectors. For more information on Conning Capital Partners, go to http://www.conningcapital.com/.
Advent International; Conning Capital Partners
CONTACT: Torie Pennington, +1-212-850-5629, or tpennington@fd-us.com,for Advent International; or Anne Steinberg, +1-212-687-8999, oranne@kitchenpr.com, for Conning Capital Partners
