10 Most Successful LBOs and Private Equity Buyouts in History

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9. Snapple Beverages

Year: 1992
Nominal value: $135 million
Value in 2017 dollars: $239 million
Buyer: Thomas H. Lee Partners

Snapple Beverages, the next one on the list of most successful LBOs and private equity buyouts in history is one of the most-cited buyout stories in history. Thomas H. Lee Partners managed to pull off every activist investor’s dream by buying Snapple Beverages for a mere $135 million, mixing it up a little (and taking it public in the process) and selling it for whopping $1.7 billion just three years later. It is estimated that the deal earned the firm about $900 million in profit; not bad for a three-year deal. Quaker Oats, the company that took Snapple off of Thomas H. Lee Partners’ hands, wasn’t nearly as lucky, as the company didn’t do well under its leadership. Quaker Oats ended up selling Snapple for just $300 million three years later. Snapple has changed hands two more times since and is currently part of Dr Pepper Snapple Group Inc. (NYSE:DPS).

10 Most Successful LBOs and Private Equity Buyouts in History

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