We create tailored strategies designed to achieve optimal results and allow our clients to realize their strategic and financial objectives, whether through a sale of the company or divestiture, growing through acquisition, or merger. As an integral part of our capabilities, we also provide fairness opinions and other general advisory and valuation services, and advise public companies involved in going private transactions.
Our clients benefit directly from the institutional backgrounds of our professionals, our expert technical transactional knowledge, our industry insights, and the direct and hands-on senior-level attention only available from a boutique firm.
Sell-side Advisory
Clients seeking strategic or financial alternatives for their businesses engage Harpeth Capital to establish a divestiture process that best meets their objectives such as maximizing value, confidentiality and timing while minimizing the disruption to daily operations. Whether we are conducting a full-blown auction or involved in a more limited scope in the case of a negotiated sale, we provide guidance through the process including “packaging” the opportunity, developing a go-to-market strategy, contacting the appropriate population of financial and/or strategic buyers, assist in negotiating terms, and provide impartial advice regarding the merits of offers received.
Buy-side Advisory / Management Buyouts
Clients seeking to grow through acquisition engage Harpeth Capital to identify potential targets, approach selected parties to determine level of interest, negotiate terms, and assist in the financing and structuring necessary to consummate the transaction.
In instances in which management teams or industry executives are presented with the opportunity to purchase their company or division, or perhaps purchase another company or division that they have identified, we will work in a similar capacity to advise on strategy and process, raise and structure the necessary financing (equity, subordinated debt or senior debt), and assist in the negotiation. Common situations include an owner seeking to retire where management may be the logical choice to acquire the business; a company seeking to divest a division that is no longer strategic to the overall business; or management identifying a few target companies that they would like to acquire and approaching them in an unsolicited fashion.
Merger Advisory
Clients considering combinations with synergistic and complementary businesses rely on Harpeth Capital to provide advisory services including merger consequences analysis, structuring, shareholder protections and negotiations to consummate a successful transaction.
Special Committee / Going Private Advisory
Another area in which our professionals have expertise is advising clients that require an independent advisor to their special and independent committees, are involved in a transaction requiring a fairness opinion, or otherwise require outside, objective analysis and advice in the context of evaluating a particular course of action. Because we are an independent firm, our advice is unencumbered by analyst research, sales and trading, or other conflicts often associated with larger firms.
We have significant experience working with small/micro-cap public companies on a variety of assignments and, in particular, going private transactions. With smaller public companies facing increasing costs and scrutiny of remaining public, many no longer enjoy the benefits that prompted them to go public in the first place. We have been on both sides of going private transactions, having served as advisors to both independent committees as well as company insiders (e.g., senior management, founding/large shareholders, directors, etc.) acting as the investor group. This experience allows us to bring unique insight to small/micro-cap companies that no longer enjoy the benefits of a public company. In many instances, we also raise the capital necessary to effect the going private transaction.