Audax Private Equity (“Audax”), a capital partner to middle market companies, announced today that it has acquired a majority stake in Lanter Delivery Systems (“Lanter”) from Equity Group Investments (“EGI”), the private investment firm founded by Sam Zell. Terms of the deal were not disclosed.

Based outside St. Louis, MO, Lanter provides overnight, unattended delivery of Original Equipment Manufacturer (OEM) parts to automotive, agriculture, and heavy truck dealerships, and to other businesses with distributed facility footprints. The company operates approximately 120 hubs and forward cross-docks across 48 states and currently makes over 13,000 stops a night.

“Steve Lanter and his leadership team have built a distinguished, national network for mission-critical parts and have established a reputation for providing industry-leading reliability and innovative solutions to complex logistical challenges,” said David Wong, Partner at Audax Private Equity. “We believe there’s an opportunity to expand and extend Lanter’s capabilities through investments in the network and in technology.”

“We want to thank EGI, who has been a terrific partner over the previous six years,” noted Steve Lanter, Founder and CEO. “We’re excited to work with and invest alongside Audax on this next phase of growth. The Audax team brings deep experience in transportation and logistics, and brings considerable resources to bear as we continue to invest in our organization and expand into new end markets that can benefit from our specialized services and capabilities.”

Audax invested in Lanter through its Flagship private equity strategy and the investment was completed through the firm’s Business Services specialization. Past investments in transportation and logistics include Alliance Ground International, a leading US-based cargo handling platform, supported by complementary positioning in ground handling and express mail service; Beacon Mobility, a provider of special needs and general education K-12 transportation services; 48Forty Solutions, a provider of end-to-end pallet management solutions; and MNX Global Logistics, an asset-light provider of time-critical logistics and supply chain services.

“Lanter, over the past decade, has had a strong track record of driving organic and inorganic growth through thoughtful service line and end market expansion, investments in its business and operations, and acquisitions to expand its geographic reach,” noted Matthew Dewey, Managing Director, Audax Private Equity. “We see a compelling opportunity to try to accelerate this growth through our Buy & Build approach to reinforce and build upon the company’s differentiated value proposition to clients.”

Ropes & Gray provided legal counsel to Audax on the transaction, while Kirkland & Ellis served in the same capacity to the sellers. J.P. Morgan served as lead financial advisor to the sellers on the transaction, which closed on February 7th, 2025. Jefferies also acted as a financial advisor to the sellers.

ABOUT LANTER DELIVERY SYSTEMS:

Lanter Delivery Systems is a privately held company providing services for the overnight unattended delivery of time-sensitive parts and components for major auto, agriculture, and heavy-duty truck dealerships and industrial supply and equipment distributors. For more information visit lanterdeliverysystems.com.

ABOUT AUDAX PRIVATE EQUITY

Headquartered in Boston, with offices in San Francisco, New York, London and Hong Kong, Audax Private Equity manages three strategies: its Flagship and Origins private equity strategies, seeking control buyouts in the core middle and lower middle markets, respectively, and its Strategic Capital strategy that provides customized equity solutions to PE-backed portfolio companies to help drive continued growth. With approximately $19 billion of assets under management as of September 2024, over 280 employees, and 100-plus investment professionals, Audax has invested in more than 170 platforms and 1,350 add-on acquisitions since its founding in 1999. Through our disciplined Buy & Build approach, across six core industry verticals, Audax seeks to help portfolio companies execute organic and inorganic growth initiatives with the aim of fueling revenue expansion, optimizing operations, and significantly increasing equity value. For more information, visit www.audaxprivateequity.com or follow us on LinkedIn.

ABOUT EQUITY GROUP INVESTMENTS

Equity Group Investments (EGI) is the private investment firm founded by Sam Zell in 1968. Backed by private capital, EGI is flexible and opportunistic with a focus on direct private investment opportunities but has the in-house expertise to invest across the capital structure. As a longer-term investor, EGI actively partners with portfolio company executives to execute strategic planning, implement operational efficiencies, and scale businesses. EGI has grown companies across numerous industries into multi-billion-dollar businesses throughout economic cycles. EGI’s current portfolio includes investments in healthcare, transportation and logistics, infrastructure, energy, consumer, industrial, manufacturing, agri-business, and real estate. For more information, visit www.egizell.com.

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