Cimarron Healthcare Capital Announces Acquisition of Ascent Behavioral Health

SALT LAKE CITY, Feb. 19, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Cimarron Healthcare Capital ("CHC"), a private equity firm focused on making investments into healthcare companies in the lower middle-market, today announced that it has completed the acquisition of Ascent Behavioral Health ("Ascent" or "the Company") together in partnership with Company's management team, Monroe Capital ("Monroe") and Veronis Suhler Stevenson ("VSS"). Ascent provides wilderness therapy, residential treatment and therapeutic boarding school programs for adolescents with mental health issues such as depression, anxiety and attachment disorder. Financial terms of the private transaction were not disclosed.

Founded in 1989, Ascent Behavioral Health operates adolescent behavioral health programs throughout Utah. The Company was built by mission-driven founders on principles committed to clinical quality and superior outcomes based on its experiential therapeutic approach. Ascent takes pride in its expert staff and caregivers, top-quality real estate facilities and continued focus on clinical research.

"Ascent has been improving the lives of adolescents and their families through their comprehensive experiential therapeutic programs for over 30 years," said James Nadauld, Managing Partner of CHC. "Ascent's leadership team has decades of behavioral healthcare experience and remains committed to delivering on its impressive history of quality care. We are excited to partner with the team in expanding on Ascent's continuum of behavioral health programs to serve high-need patients in this growing industry."

The investment will be used to support the expansion of Ascent's existing programs and potential acquisitions of complementary programs.

According to industry data, approximately 44 million adults experience mental illness in the US in a given year, with 50 percent of chronic mental illness developing by age 14 and 75 percent developing by age 24. Mental illness is rising among adolescents at an alarming rate, driven in part by increased drug and alcohol usage, and increased screen time spent on mobile devices and social media. The number of youths with severe depression has increased over 5 percent annually for the last decade; 20 percent of adolescents between the age of 13 - 18 live with a mental health condition, 10 percent have a behavior or conduct disorder, and 8 percent have an anxiety disorder.

"We are thrilled to have the support of partners with a proven track record of supporting growth, and who share our vision for providing unmatched clinical care," said Steve Nadauld, Chief Executive Officer of Ascent. "CHC and its partners delivered a flexible capital solution that will enable us to continue building a robust, patient-centric platform and pursue the next chapter of our growth, while supporting the uniquely individual treatment needs of our local, national and international clients."

"Families from around the world have trusted the Ascent companies for decades to help their children lead healthier and more fulfilling lives," said Clay Andrus, Vice President at CHC. "We are proud to provide resources and support for the team to continue this important work."

About CHC

Cimarron Healthcare Capital is a Salt Lake City-based private equity firm focused on healthcare investments in the lower middle-market. Cimarron's experienced investment team and industry domain expertise aligns its investment strategy with its portfolio companies' growth and expansion needs, creating an ecosystem designed to maximize value. For more information, please visit: www.cimarronhc.com.

About Monroe

Monroe Capital LLC ("Monroe") is a private credit asset management firm specializing in direct lending and opportunistic private credit investing. Since 2004, the firm has provided private credit solutions to borrowers in the U.S. and Canada. Monroe's middle market lending platform provides debt financing to businesses, special situation borrowers, and private equity sponsors. Investment types include cash flow, enterprise value and asset-based loans; unitranche financings; and equity co-investments. Monroe is committed to being a value-added and user-friendly partner to business owners, senior management, and private equity and independent sponsors. The firm is headquartered in Chicago and maintains offices in Atlanta, Boston, Los Angeles, New York, and San Francisco.

Monroe has been recognized by Creditflux as the 2019 Best US Direct Lending Fund; Global M&A Network as the 2019 Small Middle Markets Lender of the Year; Private Debt Investor as the 2018 Lower Mid-Market Lender of the Year; M&A Advisor as the 2016 Lender Firm of the Year; and the U.S. Small Business Administration as the 2015 Small Business Investment Company (SBIC) of the Year. For more information, please visit www.monroecap.com.

About VSS

VSS is a private investment firm that invests in the healthcare, information, business services  and education industries. Headquartered in New York, VSS provides capital for growth financing, recapitalizations, strategic acquisitions, and buyouts to lower middle market companies and management teams with the goal of building companies organically as well as through a focused add-on acquisition program. VSS makes privately-negotiated investments across the capital structure and invests in situations requiring control or non-control equity, mezzanine securities, and structured equity securities. For more information, please visit: www.vss.com.

About Ascent Behavioral Health

Ascent operates six unique residential programs in Utah that deliver behavioral health treatment to adolescents across a continuum of care, including wilderness therapy, residential treatment centers and a therapeutic boarding school. Founded in 1989, the Company has treated over 5,000 youths between the ages of 12 and 18 who have come from all over the world seeking care. The Company's focus on clinical quality and experiential therapy effectively helps youth struggling with an array of behavioral health disorders including depression, anxiety and attachment disorders.

PRESS CONTACT: 

Clay Andrus

candrus@cimarronhc.com

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SOURCE Cimarron Healthcare Capital