Allied Capital Corporation (NYSE:ALD) announced today that it has
invested $52 million of debt in Abraxas Corporation, a leading provider
of risk mitigation technologies for the U.S. national security
community. Allied Capital’s investment took
the form of a senior secured debt facility. The capital was used by the
company to support an acquisition, to refinance existing indebtedness
and to provide working capital.
Abraxas was founded in 2001 as a specialized contractor with highly
skilled capabilities in collection, analysis and technical support to
operations. Today, through both organic growth and strategic
acquisitions, the company has grown its service offerings to include
mission-critical software solutions; design and testing of custom
computer chips for unique national security applications; and
engineering and technical aviation consulting for unmanned aircraft
systems. The company’s latest acquisition,
Anonymizer, Inc., is the leading provider of high-end solutions that
secure outbound Information Operations for clients within the national
security community.
“We have been exploring investment
opportunities in the government contracting sector for quite some time,”
said John Fruehwirth, Managing Director and Deputy Head of Private
Finance for Allied Capital. “Abraxas is an
attractive opportunity because of its strong relationships within the
national security community and its highly skilled and specialized
workforce,” he added.
“We are pleased to have Allied Capital as our
new financial partner,” said Richard Helms,
Founder and CEO of Abraxas. “Their knowledge
of the government contracting space, their partnership approach to
investing and their financial strength and commitment to middle market
companies make them the ideal partner for us,”
he added.
About Allied Capital
Allied Capital is a leading business development company (BDC) in the
U.S. that invests private debt and equity capital in middle market
businesses nationwide. Founded in 1958 and operating as a public company
since 1960, Allied Capital is celebrating 50 years of investing in and
supporting the U.S. entrepreneurial economy.
Allied Capital provides long-term debt and equity capital for management
and sponsor-led buyouts, and for recapitalizations, acquisitions and
growth of middle market companies. Allied Capital’s
one-stop financing capabilities include first and second lien senior
loans, unitranche debt, junior or subordinated debt and equity. Allied
Capital seeks to invest in stable, less cyclical companies that produce
significant free cash flow and high returns on invested capital. At
March 31, 2008, the company’s private finance
portfolio included investments in 124 companies that generate aggregate
revenues of over $13 billion and employ more than 98,000 people.
Allied Capital provides flexible, competitive debt and equity capital
for management and sponsor-led buyouts, recapitalizations, acquisitions
and growth of middle market companies. Allied Capital’s
seamless, one-stop financing capabilities include first and second lien
senior loans, unitranche debt, junior or mezzanine debt and equity.
Headquartered in Washington, DC, Allied Capital offers shareholders the
opportunity to participate in the private equity industry through an
investment in the company’s New York Stock
Exchange-listed stock, which is traded under the symbol ALD. For more
information, please visit www.alliedcapital.com,
call Allied Capital investor relations toll-free at (888) 818-5298, or
e-mail us at ir@alliedcapital.com.
About Abraxas, Inc.
Abraxas develops special technology and implements trusted unique
technical solutions to address the global challenges faced by the
National Security community today and those that it will face in the
future. Abraxas employs recognized experts to resolve those challenges
and skilled engineers to address the product needs working across all
technology domains to ensure the delivery of the most advanced
comprehensive solutions. For more information, please visit www.abraxascorp.com.
Forward-Looking Statements
The information contained in this press release includes forward-looking
statements. These forward-looking statements are subject to the inherent
uncertainties in predicting future results and conditions. Certain
factors could cause actual results and conditions to differ materially
from those projected in these forward-looking statements, and these
factors are enumerated in Allied Capital’s
filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. This press release
should be read in conjunction with the company’s
recent SEC filings.
