Halyard Capital Announces Sale of EducationDynamics to Investor Group led by Muirlands Capital, KnowledgeShares and Prudential Capital Group

NEW YORK, Dec. 8, 2015 /PRNewswire/ -- Halyard Capital ("Halyard"), a New York based private equity firm, announced today that its portfolio company, EducationDynamics (the "Company" or "EDDY"), was sold to an investor group led by Muirlands Capital, KnowledgeShares and Prudential Capital Group.  Halyard will continue to be a minority investor in the Company. EDDY is headquartered in Hoboken, NJ and has additional offices in Boca Raton, FL and Newtown Square, PA.  EDDY is one of the market leaders in helping higher education institutions find and enroll the highest quality student prospects.  Terms of the transaction were not disclosed. 

"We are extremely pleased to have worked with the management team at EDDY to build one of the leading businesses focused on helping colleges find and retain the highest quality students," said Bruce Eatroff, Founding Partner of Halyard Capital. "The Company has established a reputation for being a respected and trusted partner to hundreds of the largest schools in the country," added Eatroff.

Rich Lobo, Managing Partner of Muirlands Capital, added, "We are excited to partner with the management team at EducationDynamics to build upon its market leading position. In particular, we believe there are substantial opportunities to grow the Company's business with not-for-profit schools that are increasingly targeting the adult learner."

Bruce Douglas, the CEO of EDDY, said, "Halyard Capital has been an outstanding financial and strategic partner and was the original architect behind the EducationDynamics strategy.  We are extremely pleased that three prominent, experienced investors (Muirlands, KnowledgeShares and Prudential Capital Group) are committed to taking our business to the next level."

EDDY and Halyard Capital were represented by investment bank Lazard Middle Market and received legal advice from Akin Gump.  Winston & Strawn provided legal advice to the new investor group.

About EducationDynamics

EducationDynamics is the industry leader in helping colleges and universities – for-profit and not-for-profit, traditional and online, private and public, large and small – find the highest quality student prospects and achieve their enrollment goals. As the trusted partner to more than 900 higher educational institutions, over many years of service we have earned our reputation for providing the resources and expertise required to meet today's recruitment challenges.  We do this through our own network of highly regarded web properties that include eLearners.com, GradSchools.com, EducationConnection.com, and StudyAbroad.com. For more information about EducationDynamics, please visit www.EducationDynamics.com.

About Halyard Capital

Halyard is a lower middle-market private equity firm focused on creating value within companies in high- growth sectors.  Halyard's sectors of focus include technology-enabled Business and Information Services, Digital Marketing and Data Analytics, IT Security and IT Infrastructure and Communications.  The firm specializes in growth equity, leveraged buyouts and structured equity investments and its investment philosophy rests upon its deep understanding of its targeted industries, the development of its investment theses, and its network of executive relationships.  Halyard has extensive experience and a proven track record in the marketing services sector, having invested in businesses that include TRANZACT, Datamyx, Education Dynamics, WMI, Engauge and Aberdeen Group.  The sale of EducationDynamics represents the fourth significant monetization from Halyard Capital Fund II, following the sale of Engauge to Publicis in August 2013, the partial monetization of OneSource Virtual HR to Technology Crossover Ventures in June 2015 and the sale of Datamyx to Deluxe Corporation in October 2015. For more information on Halyard, please visit www.halyard.com.

About Muirlands Capital

Muirlands Capital LLC is a lower middle market private equity firm focused on investing in growth-oriented businesses across industry sectors in partnership with experienced operating executives.  The firm was formed in 2014 by Richard Lobo, who had previously spent over 20 years at CHS Capital, a prominent Chicago-based private equity firm, where he co-led the firm's Business Services efforts.  For more information, please contact Richard at [email protected].

About KnowledgeShares

KnowledgeShares.org (KSO) partners with leading organizations in higher education and the private sector to invest financial and human capital to help grow colleges, universities, businesses, and not-for- profit institutions.  The knowledge economy is driving innovative public-private partnerships, and through these, KSO is helping educate and reskill the workforce of tomorrow.   For more information, visit www.KnowledgeShares.org.

About Prudential Capital Group

Prudential Capital Group has been a leading provider of private debt, mezzanine and equity securities to companies worldwide for more than 75 years. Managing a portfolio of nearly $74 billion, as of September 30, 2015, Prudential Capital offers private capital to companies, worldwide.  The global regional office network has locations in Atlanta, Chicago, Dallas, Frankfurt, London, Los Angeles, Milan, Minneapolis, Newark, N.J., New York, Paris and San Francisco.  For more information, please visit www.prudentialcapitalgroup.com.

Contact: Bruce Eatroff, 1-212-5542145, [email protected]

SOURCE Halyard Capital

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