Guardian Capital Group has agreed to acquire a 70% stake in Alta Capital Management, a news release said.
Under the terms of the deal, Guardian will pay $45 million upon closing, with additional amounts of up to $10 million payable over four years from closing. The transaction is expected to close in early 2018, subject to regulatory approvals.
Alta, a Salt Lake City-based manager with $3.2 billion in assets under management as of Sept. 30, manages U.S. equity and balanced investment strategies.
Guardian Capital Group is a Toronto-based diversified financial services firm with several businesses including institutional investment management services. The acquisition is part of Guardian's plan to increase its presence and distribution network in the U.S. Guardian had C$27.3 billion ($20.3 billion) in AUM as of Dec. 31, including C$24.4 billion in institutional AUM, according to its latest annual report.
Cambridge International Partners served as financial adviser to Alta. Guardian was represented by Pryor Cashman and Baker & McKenzie, and Alta was represented by Faegre Baker Daniels.
Further information could not be learned by press time; George Mavroudis, Guardian's president and CEO, did not return a phone call by press time.
