News
ERNST & YOUNG VENTURE CAPITAL AWARD OF EXCELLENCE
GOES TO NUTRISYSTEM, INC., CEO
Use of Venture Capital Contributed To Success
King of Prussia, PA – December 1, 2006– NewSpring Capital announced today that Michael Hagan, the Chairman and CEO of NutriSystem, Inc., is the recipient of the first Ernst & Young Venture Capital Award of Excellence. Mr. Hagan was selected from a distinguished group of regional Entrepreneur of the Year award winners whose companies had received venture capital backing.
NewSpring Capital led the venture buyout financing of NutriSystem in December, 2002, with a $3 million investment in the $9.6 million round. Mr. Hagan successfully took the company from sales of $27 million in 2002 to projected sales of over $550 million in 2006. “NutriSystem is an outstanding example of a company that was able to move forward faster thanks to venture capital involvement,” says Joe Muscat, who leads Ernst & Young’s Americas Venture Capital Advisory Group. “Mike and the NutriSystem team have done a tremendous job executing on their business plan over the past four years. This award is well deserved. We at NewSpring Capital are fortunate to be able to work with passionate entrepreneurs like Mike to assist them in realizing their visions,” added Michael DiPiano, Managing Partner of NewSpring Capital and NutriSystem Director. NewSpring Capital maintains a portion of its original position in NutriSystem, whose stock has appreciated over 10,000% since the venture capital investment.
About NutriSystem
NutriSystem (NASDAQ: NTRI) is a leading provider of weight management products and services. The company offers a weight loss program based on portion-controlled, lower Glycemic Index prepared meals. The program has no membership fees and provides free online and telephone counseling.
About NewSpring Capital
NewSpring Capital, based in King of Prussia, PA, manages a family of private equity funds which provide growth equity and mezzanine debt financing to growth and expansion stage companies with a focus on business services, healthcare, life sciences, specialty manufacturing and technology. NewSpring Capital focuses primarily on businesses in the mid-Atlantic region and invests between $3-$7.5 million per transaction in round sizes up to $30 million. For more information about NewSpring Capital and its family of funds, visit www.newspringcapital.com.
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