Comvest Credit Partners, a provider of financing solutions to middle-market companies, acted as administrative agent in upsizing its existing senior secured credit facility to CareVet, an operator of independent veterinary hospitals. The new $228 million facility — Comvest’s fourth upsize since its initial $35 million commitment in September 2020 — will enable CareVet’s management team and private equity sponsor Compass Group Equity Partners (CGEP) to continue to grow the business through acquisitions.
Founded in 2018, CareVet is a St. Louis-based veterinary practice management group that acquires and manages established veterinary hospitals throughout the United States. CareVet supports its practices through investments in their hospitals, services and teams to prioritize the client experience and deliver a full spectrum of care, including routine exams, vaccinations, labwork, surgery, dentistry, medication prescriptions and pet boarding.
“CareVet and CGEP put together a best-in-class management, operations, and business development team. Comvest is excited to continue to support them in building a premier care platform in the veterinary space,” Dan Lee, partner at Comvest, said.
“This transaction demonstrates Comvest’s ability to grow with our rapidly-expanding platforms and reflects our deep underwriting expertise in healthcare services, and in particular, the pet space,” Brian Cercek, principal at Comvest, said. “Starting with our initial $35 million facility in 2020 to support growth-related acquisitions, Comvest has been proud to provide substantial additional commitments through a tailored financing solution that enables CareVet to opportunistically pursue its ambitious goals. In a relatively short time, CareVet has grown from 30 to nearly 120 hospital locations and is now among the nation’s fastest-growing veterinary practice managers.”
“This upsize represents Comvest’s fifth transaction with CGEP, demonstrating the strength of our relationship as well as our ability to create a financing solution to facilitate the continued successful growth of the CareVet platform,” Joe Higginbotham, principal at Comvest, said. “Comvest looks forward to continuing to support CareVet’s world-class leadership team as they further expand their network of veterinary hospitals that provide superior care.”
