Stellex Capital Management Acquires Manufacturer Morbark
Stellex Capital Management has acquired Morbark LLC, the lawn-and-garden equipment manufacturer announced today. The acquisition is focused on providing growth capital and resources to expand the company in the future.
The stock purchase is a strong fit for the new owners with a portfolio focus of identifying companies with solid market and product presence that can benefit from growth capital and aggressive management and operating strategies.
“Our acquisition of Morbark is a great fit for us,” said David Waxman, principal of Stellex. “We believe the company is well positioned to grow in the coming years, and we are confident that the capital and resources we bring will fuel that growth. Morbark is exactly the type of company we look to invest in – strong history, market presence, products, and an outstanding workforce. In addition, we believe with the right investment and resources they represent a significant growth opportunity in the coming years.”
“Though always difficult to leave a family business, we felt this was the right time with the right investor who can build on the legacy my father started and I have spent my entire life dedicated to,” said Lon Morey, Morbark CEO and son of the Morbark founder. “We are confident that the Stellex group will be able to take Morbark to the next level of excellence and growth. We are excited for the company and its employees and the future envisioned for them.”
Morbark was represented by Wells Fargo Securities LLC as financial advisor and Warner Norcross & Judd LLP as legal advisor.
Morbark, which also owns the Boxer line of equipment, produces wood chippers, flails, brush chippers, horizontal and tub grinders, sawmill equipment, material handling systems and more.
About the Author
Michael Roth
Editor
Michael Roth has covered the equipment rental industry full time for RER since 1989 and has served as the magazine’s editor in chief since 1994. He has nearly 30 years experience as a professional journalist. Roth has visited hundreds of rental centers and industry manufacturers, written hundreds of feature stories for RER and thousands of news stories for the magazine and its electronic newsletter RER Reports. Roth has interviewed leading executives for most of the industry’s largest rental companies and manufacturers as well as hundreds of smaller independent companies. He has visited with and reported on rental companies and manufacturers in Europe, Central America and Asia as well as Mexico, Canada and the United States. Roth was co-founder of RER Reports, the industry’s first weekly newsletter, which began as a fax newsletter in 1996, and later became an online newsletter. Roth has spoken at conventions sponsored by the American Rental Association, Associated Equipment Distributors, California Rental Association and other industry events and has spoken before industry groups in several countries. He lives and works in Los Angeles when he’s not traveling to cover industry events.