ABRA bought by Hellman & Friedman

Founded in 1984, ABRA operates 186 company-owned collision repair centers and 48 franchised centers in 19 states. In June, ABRA was put up for auction by Palladium Equity Partners, the private equity firm that acquired the MSO in 2011.

Harris Williams & Co., a middle market investment bank, facilitated the sale, which is expected to close in the third quarter of 2014.  

The announcement comes two weeks after Blackstone, the largest private equity group in the United States, purchased a majority stake in Service King, another collision repair multi-shop operator.

“Through its years of focus and dedication to operational excellence, ABRA has created one of the most prominent platforms in the collision repair industry, with an outstanding management team and an exceptional track record of growth.  Management and Palladium have done a tremendous job building a clear leader in the collision repair sector, and we are excited that they have found a partner in H&F to continue to execute their strategic growth plan,” said Frank Mountcastle, managing director with Harris Williams & Co.

 “The ABRA transaction marks an important milestone in the continued growth and expansion of our efforts in the sector.  Through partnerships with premier clients like ABRA, we have built the #1 middle market sell-side platform in the automotive aftermarket,” added Joe Conner, managing director with Harris Williams & Co. “The collision repair sector has received a tremendous amount of attention in the market due to its compelling long-term growth fundamentals, and we expect to continue to see investment activity in the sector for the foreseeable future.”

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