Dallas-based Latticework Capital Management (Latticework) is pleased to announce its sale of American Veterinary Group (AVG) to New York-based Oak Hill Capital (Oak Hill), realizing a 6.5x multiple on invested capital (MOIC) and 82% internal rate of return (IRR). AVG is a unique veterinary services platform with a regionally focused network of general practices and innovative urgent care clinics located throughout the Southeastern United States.
AVG was founded to be the partner of choice for its veterinarian partners allowing them to maintain clinical autonomy focusing on their patients instead of the administrative functions of their business. The company is led by CEO Craig Niebur who had a long-standing relationship with Latticework founders Kyle Bradford and Steve Neumann having worked with them in a prior portfolio company. AVG grew substantially since its founding via investment in an industry leading management team and infrastructure which fueled more than 40 successful acquisitions with its veterinarian partners. Additionally, the company acquired and cultivated the first urgent care platform in the industry, helping to fill a void in the care continuum.
“I’m grateful for the trust and support from the Latticework team over the past five years. My past relationship with the Latticework founders was a big reason for me to partner with them at AVG. Their hands on approach and experience scaling multi-site healthcare companies and the countless number of hours we spent working together helped transform AVG from a small startup into an industry leading platform poised for growth for years to come,” said Craig Niebur, CEO of AVG.
According to Co-Founder and Managing Partner Kyle Bradford, “We built a foundation for a strong partnership with AVG that resulted in outstanding results for all parties. Beginning with our first acquired clinic in South Florida in late 2015, our partnership with Craig and his management team resulted in a company that supports more than 150 veterinarians across nearly 50 veterinary practices and urgent care clinics throughout the South and Southeast regions.”
“We are very excited for AVG’s future success with Oak Hill given their track record in the animal health industry and AVG’s exceptional leadership,” said Steve Neumann, Co-Founder and Managing Partner at Latticework.
Headquartered in Dallas, Latticework is a growth oriented private equity firm focused exclusively on the healthcare industry. Latticework leverages its over 60 combined years of healthcare experience, as well as its network of industry executives, to help companies grow and realize their full long-term value. The firm is currently investing out of LCM Healthcare Fund I, LP.
Akash Sethi at McGuireWoods LLP represented Latticework and AVG in the transaction. Harris Williams & Co. acted as financial advisor to AVG. The transaction was led by Whit Knier of the Harris Williams Healthcare & Life Sciences (HCLS) Group and Corey Benjamin of the firm’s Consumer Group.
Oak Hill is a private equity firm managing funds with over $16 billion of initial capital commitments and co-investments since inception. Over the past 35 years, Oak Hill and its predecessors have invested in approximately 100 private equity transactions across broad segments of the U.S. and global economies.