Buyer Profile
Nautic Partners is a Providence, Rhode Island-based middle-market firm that closed its latest fund, Nautic Partners XI LP, at $4.5 billion in October 2024, surpassing its initial target of $3.75 billion and reaching its hard cap. The fund attracted a diverse investor base including public and private pension plans, insurers, health systems, fund of funds, family offices, financial institutions, endowments, and foundations across the Americas, Europe, Asia, and the Middle East.
Managing Director Scott Hilinski stated: "We believe our success and growth is due to our ability to consistently execute our investment strategy while maintaining our culture." Fund XI marks Nautic's continued expansion, with the firm's most recent notable transaction being the acquisition of Berry Global's Specialty Tapes business for approximately $540 million. This transaction aligned with Berry's strategy to transition toward consumer-focused end markets.
Nautic's investment strategy focuses on middle-market companies in the industrial, healthcare, and services sectors. The firm has demonstrated a pattern of acquiring carve-outs and standalone businesses with operational improvement potential, then building value through strategic growth initiatives and selective add-on acquisitions. The Berry Global tapes acquisition exemplifies Nautic's ability to execute complex corporate carve-outs.
The strategic rationale for Nautic's interest in AquaScience centers on the water treatment sector's alignment with Nautic's industrial services thesis. Water treatment businesses exhibit the characteristics Nautic targets: essential-service nature, recurring revenue, operational improvement opportunities, and fragmented markets supporting buy-and-build strategies. With $4.5 billion in fresh capital, Nautic has significant dry powder for new platform investments.
For AquaScience, Nautic would bring middle-market investment expertise, operational resources, and the capital necessary to accelerate growth through both organic investment and add-on acquisitions. Nautic's Fund XI size suggests the firm is targeting platform investments that can scale into larger positions over the hold period -- making AquaScience an attractive seed investment for a potential water treatment platform build.