SOUTH BEND, Ind. & NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Lighthouse Autism Center (“Lighthouse” or the “Company”) today announced a strategic investment by an affiliate of Cerberus Capital Management (“Cerberus”), a global leader in alternative investing. Lighthouse Founder and Chief Executive Officer Gregg Maggioli and Abry Partners will invest alongside Cerberus in the transaction.
Lighthouse is a leading provider of center-based applied behavioral analysis (“ABA”) services for children diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder. Gregg and Sandy Maggioli founded Lighthouse in 2012 as a personal mission to improve the access to quality care and therapy for children diagnosed with autism. The Company is committed to achieving the highest quality outcomes through the delivery of evidence-based care by its team of highly credentialed clinical staff and data-centric approach. With its premier reputation for clinical and operational excellence, Lighthouse has become the partner of choice for families, providers, and payors. Gregg Maggioli will continue to lead Lighthouse along with members of his experienced management team.
“We are incredibly proud of the number of children and families we have impacted, but there is a lot more work to do,” said Gregg Maggioli. “This partnership will accelerate our mission of offering the highest quality of ABA therapy to children and families who need it. With Cerberus’ support, we will be able to extend our track record of helping children with autism reach their goals.”
Brett Ingersoll, Senior Managing Director at Cerberus, added: “Over the past decade, Gregg and the Lighthouse team have built a mission-driven platform supported by clinical excellence. Lighthouse’s strong reputation is a result of the team’s passion and dedication to best-in-class therapy. We look forward to supporting Lighthouse on its mission to reach even more children and families.”
Nicholas Scola, Partner at Abry Partners, added: "We are excited to continue our partnership with the Lighthouse team and welcome the support of Cerberus. Collectively, we are looking forward to further expanding this proven model of care and creating an even greater impact.”
Scott Badesch, former President and CEO of the Autism Society of America, commented: “Quality outcome-based ABA therapy has proven to be effective and beneficial to helping autistic individuals significantly enhance their quality of life. This new and impressive partnership will help in further advancing the highest standard of outcome-based services, enabling more individuals impacted by autism and their parents to benefit from Lighthouse’s approach and team.”
Dechert LLP served as legal advisor and Houlihan Lokey served as financial advisor to Cerberus. McDermott Will & Emery LLP served as legal advisor and TripleTree, LLC served as financial advisor to Lighthouse. Silver Point Finance fully underwrote and led the debt financing and Fortress Capital participated as a lender in the transaction.
About Lighthouse Autism Center
Headquartered in South Bend, Indiana, Lighthouse is a leading provider of center-based autism behavioral health services for children diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder. Through its network of centers across the Midwest and using the principles of applied behavior analysis and other therapeutic methodologies, the company delivers individualized, evidence-based programs with its team of board-certified behavior analysts, speech therapists, occupational therapists, and behavior technicians. For more information about Lighthouse, visit the company's website at: http://www.lighthouseautismcenter.com.
About Cerberus
Founded in 1992, Cerberus is a global leader in alternative investing with over $55 billion in assets across complementary credit, private equity, and real estate strategies. We invest across the capital structure where our integrated investment platforms and proprietary operating capabilities create an edge to improve performance and drive long-term value. Our tenured teams have experience working collaboratively across asset classes, sectors, and geographies to seek strong risk-adjusted returns for our investors. For more information about our people and platforms, visit us at www.cerberus.com.
About Abry Partners
Abry is one of the most experienced and successful sector-focused private equity investment firms in North America. Since its founding in 1989, the firm has completed over $82 billion of leveraged transactions and other private equity or preferred equity placements. Currently, the firm manages over $5 billion of capital across its active funds. For more information on Abry, please visit www.abry.com.