J.F. Lehman & Company Investment Affiliate Acquires Heritage-Crystal Clean

An investment affiliate of J.F. Lehman & Company has acquired Heritage-Crystal Clean, Inc. (Crystal Clean), a provider of environmental and waste disposal services.

The acquisition was announced in July 2023 and has now been successfully concluded. J.F. Lehman expressed its enthusiasm for the partnership with Crystal Clean.

"We are excited to begin our partnership with Crystal Clean's leadership team and build on the Company's strong foundation as a clear category leader and unparalleled provider of environmental and waste disposal services," said Glenn Shor, partner at J.F. Lehman & Company, in a statement. "We have long admired Crystal Clean's reputation of providing high-quality services to its diversified, blue-chip customer base, as well as the financial and operational excellence the team has established."

Crystal Clean's President and CEO, Brian Recatto, also voiced his excitement about the partnership.

"Our longstanding mission has been to deliver best-in-class, environmentally sustainable solutions to our customers and we believe our partnership with J.F. Lehman puts us in the best position to continue to do so," he said. "We appreciate the support from both the Crystal Clean and J.F. Lehman teams and are looking forward to the next chapter of growth in concert and partnership with J.F. Lehman."

As part of the transaction, J.F. Lehman acquired all outstanding shares of Crystal Clean stock, offering Crystal Clean shareholders $45.50 in cash for each share of Crystal Clean common stock owned. Consequently, Crystal Clean's common stock is no longer traded on the NASDAQ stock exchange.

The acquisition was facilitated with debt financing from Jefferies Finance LLC, Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation, and PSP Investments Credit USA LLC.

Financial advisory services for Crystal Clean were provided by William Blair & Company, with Stifel delivering a fairness opinion. McDermott Will & Emery LLP served as legal counsel to Crystal Clean.

J.F. Lehman received financial advice from Houlihan Lokey, Inc. and Jefferies LLC, while legal counsel was provided by Shearman & Sterling LLP and Jones Day.