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Empresas y finanzas

Exclusive: KKR, Apollo, others mull KAR Auction buyout: sources


    NEW YORK (Reuters) - KKR & Co LP and Apollo Global Management LLC are among a handful of private equity firms considering a buyout of KAR Auction Services Inc , according to several people familiar with the matter, in a deal that could top $4 billion.

    Reuters first reported in August that the vehicle auction company, which has a market value of roughly $2.5 billion and debt of about $1.8 billion, has held exploratory talks with buyout firms about a potential leveraged buyout.

    KAR Auction is in the early stages of buyout discussions after hiring investment bank Evercore Partners to solicit offers, and there is no guarantee of a deal, the sources said.

    Kelso & Co, Goldman Sachs Capital Partners , ValueAct Capital LLC and Parthenon Capital LLC collectively own about 78 percent of KAR Auction.

    KAR Auction declined to comment while its main shareholders did not respond to a request for comment. KKR and Apollo also declined to comment.

    Carmel, Indiana-based KAR Auction, through its used-car wholesale auctions arm ADESA Inc, is No. 2 in U.S. whole car auctions behind Cox Enterprises Inc's Manheim unit, according to Standard & Poor's.

    (Reporting by Greg Roumeliotis and Soyoung Kim in New York; Editing by Jeffrey Benkoe)