Neff Corp. Acquisition Completed

June 4, 2007 • Lightyear Capital, New York, N.Y., announced it has completed the purchase of Miami, Fla.-based Neff Corp. from private equipment firm Odyssey Investment Partners, paying $900 million for the company. With the deal finalized, the Miami Herald reported the sale paid off Neff's $464.5 million debt and cashed out the company's investors. Shareholders will receive $25.95 per share.

 

Some Neff managers will continue to keep a stake in the company. Juan Carlos Mas, who stepped down as CEO after the acquisition, will reportedly maintain 5 percent of the company. He was replaced by Chief Operating Officer Graham Hood.

 

With 66 branches throughout five regions and a fleet of more than 13,000 pieces of equipment in its rental fleet, Neff's “broad reach” is what attracted Lightyear to the company, Donald Marron, chairman and CEO of the private equity firm, told the Miami Herald. “Neff's size is a big asset, also its market,” he said. “It covers the whole Sunbelt, so there's business all the time.”