DENVER — A joint venture between Fortress Investment Group LLC and a subsidiary of Phillips 66 Co. has acquired Pester Marketing Co., doing business as Alta Convenience.
For nearly 65 years, Pester, and more recently Alta Convenience, has been a petroleum marketer and convenience-store retailer in the Rocky Mountain, Southwest and Midwest regions. The ownership group originally acquired Pester’s 47 company-operated stores in May 2016 as a spinoff from World Fuel Services Corp. after Miami-based World Fuel’s purchase of Pester in September 2015. WFS retained the noncompany-operated store business units. In January 2018, under the guidance of Pester’s president and CEO, Richard Spresser, the company completed the acquisitions of Western Convenience and Kwik Stop and increased its store count to 119 locations in Colorado, Nebraska, New Mexico, Kansas and Washington.
- Alta is No. 65 on CSP’s 2020 Top 202 ranking of c-store chains by store count.
After closing, senior executive management, including Richard Spresser and CFO Monte McGilvray, will continue to lead the Denver-based company.
Investment bank Matrix Capital Markets Group Inc., Richmond, Va., provided merger and acquisition advisory services to Pester, which included valuation advisory, marketing the business through a confidential, structured sale process and negotiation of the purchase agreement. Spencer Cavalier, co-head of Matrix’s Downstream Energy & Convenience Retail Group, managed the transaction with Sean Dooley, director, and Martin McElroy, associate.
“While it was time for the current shareholders to monetize their investment, we look forward to seeing Pester grow with Rich’s further stewardship under the new ownership of Fortress and Phillips 66. I am excited to see the businesses continue with such well-respected organizations,” said Sam Youngblood, general partner and board chairman.
“It is very special to have advised Pester on the sale of the Company for a second time,” said Cavalier. “The current ownership group and management team, which was led by CEO Rich Spresser during both transactions, have grown and significantly improved the chain. We look forward to watching the company continue to grow under its new ownership.”
Fortress Investment Group is a diversified global investment manager with approximately $49.9 billion of assets under management. Founded in 1998, the New York-based firm manages assets on behalf of approximately 1,800 institutional clients and private investors worldwide across a range of credit and real estate, private equity and permanent capital investment strategies.
In 2014, Fortress Investment Group acquired United Oil Co., Gardena, Calif., which operated more than 130 sites in the Los Angeles and San Diego metropolitan areas. United Oil, renamed United Pacific, in 2015 acquired a portfolio of 251 c-stores from Pacific Convenience & Fuels, Pleasanton, Calif. United Pacific, now based in Long Beach, Calif., is No. 19 on CSP’s 2020 Top 202.
Based in Houston, Phillips 66 is a diversified energy manufacturing and logistics company with a portfolio of midstream, chemicals, refining and marketing and specialties businesses. Using a network of branded marketers and dealers operating approximately 7,500 outlets, its U.S. marketing business supplies gasoline under the Phillips 66, 76 and Conoco brands.
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