NEW YORK, February 14, 2000 - Castle Harlan, Inc., the New York merchant bank, said today it had completed the acquisition of Taylor Publishing Company, one of the nation's leading publishers of high school and college yearbooks, from Insilco Holding Co. The transaction price was $93.48 million, to be adjusted for working capital.
Taylor Publishing is based in Dallas, Texas, and has been in business for more than 60 years. Yearbooks comprise 91 percent of its business. Last year the company sold several million yearbooks for more than 5,000 schools and is generally recognized as the industry's technological leader.
The company also has a specialty publishing operation and offers reunion services.
David Pittaway, senior managing director at Castle Harlan, said Taylor Publishing's current management team, led by the president, Craig Van Pelt, would continue in their present positions.
Equity financing for the transaction, Pittaway said, was provided by Castle Harlan Partners III, L.P., a $630 million private equity investment fund organized and managed by Castle Harlan.
Since its founding in 1987, Castle Harlan has completed acquisitions exceeding $4.5 billion. Castle Harlan's portfolio companies have included Delaware Management Company, the Philadelphia-based money-management firm with more than $32 billion in assets under management; Truck Components, Inc., the largest manufacturer of components for large-truck braking systems; Smarte Carte, the world's largest airport luggage cart rental company; and MAG Aerospace, the leader in worldwide manufacture of aircraft sanitation systems.
Currently among its portfolio companies are Universal Compression, Inc., a leading independent provider of natural gas compression equipment and services; Worldwide Flight Services, one of the world's leading providers of ground services to the aviation industry, which was acquired from AMR Corp. in March; and the Verdugt B. V. group of acid salts businesses, based in the Netherlands, which was acquired from BP Amoco in April.
Castle Harlan was founded by John K. Castle, a pioneer in institutionalizing private equity investing through limited partnerships and the former president and chief executive officer of Donaldson, Lufkin & Jenrette, the investment banking firm, and by Leonard M. Harlan, founder and former owner and chairman of The Harlan Company, a diversified real estate and corporate finance advisory firm.