Private Equity Deals

EQT Partners has agreed to sell Cimbria, a Denmark-based manufacturer of equipment for handling and processing of grain and seed products, to Danish private equity firm Axcel. No financial terms were disclosed for the deal, which is expected to close in August. www.cimbria.com

Magnablend Inc., a Waxahachie, Texas-based powder and liquid blender for the oil field service and agricultural markets, said that it has been recapitalized by an investor group that includes TGF Management Corp., Austin Ventures and Cotton Creek Capital. No financial terms were disclosed. www.magnablend.com

Miroglio, an Italian textile group, has secured €40 million in private equity funding from Mandarin Capital Partners, according to Reuters.

Symphony Technology Group has completed its acquisition of Shopzilla Inc. from Scripps Networks Interactive Inc. (NYSE:SNI). The deal was valued at $165 million, including $150 million in up-front cash and $15 million in deferred payments. Tennenbaum Capital Partners provided an unspecified amount of debt financing. Shopzilla is a consumer lead generation platform for online retailers. www.shopzilla.com

Unisyn Medical Technologies, a Golden, Colo.-based portfolio company of Galen Partners, has sold certain assets related to its acoustic power testing laboratories to Acertara Acoustic Laboratories LLC. No financial terms were disclosed. www.unisynmedical.com

THURSDAY, JUNE 2

Gores Group reportedly has bid to acquire at least half of the 405 stores still being operated by bankrupt bookseller Borders Group Inc. www.borders.com

New Mountain Capital has acquired a majority stake in SymphonyIRI Group Inc., a Chicago-based provider of solutions and services for driving revenue and profit growth in consumer packaged goods, retail and healthcare companies. No financial terms were disclosed, except that BofA Merrill Lynch, Jefferies Finance and BMO Capital Markets provided debt financing. Former majority owner Symphony Technology Group will retain a “significant equity position.” www.SymphonyIRI.com

Tonka Bay Equity Partners has completed a dividend recapitalization of portfolio company Circuit Check Holdings Inc., a Maple Grove, Minn.-based provider of test solutions for printed circuit
board assemblies. No financial terms were disclosed. www.circuitcheck.com

WEDNESDAY, JUNE 1

Gores Group has acquired an undisclosed stake in Big Strike Inc., a Gardena, Calif.-based maker of casual and career junior lifestyle apparel for women. No financial terms were disclosed. www.bigstrikeinc.com

Cross Atlantic Capital Partners has invested an undisclosed amount in Rootstock Software, a San Ramon, Calif.–based provider of SaaS for mid-market manufacturers.

Cardinal Gas Storage Partners, a joint venture between Energy Capital Partners and Redbird Gas Storage, has acquired Monroe Gas Storage Co., a natural gas storage reservoir facility located in northeast Mississippi. The deal is valued at $148 million, and also includes an option on development rights to an adjacent depleted natural gas reservoir. The seller is High Sierra Monroe LLC. www.ecpartners.com

Huron Capital Partners has invested $40 million to sponsor a recapitalization of Hughes Associates, a Baltimore-based provider of fire protection engineering consulting. www.huroncapital.com

Jyothy Laboratories, an Indian maker of laundry detergents, is in talks to raise between $150 million and $200 million from private equity firms, according to Reuters. Firms in talks for the minority position reportedly include The Carlyle Group, TPG Capital, Apax Partners and existing Jyothy shareholder Actis. Henkel AG has an option to acquire up to a 26% stake in Jyothy in five years, as part of a recent deal in which Jyothy bought 51% of Henkel’s Indian unit for $127 million.

PineBridge Investments made an investment in African infrastructure services company Thuthuka Group Ltd. No financial terms were disclosed. www.pinebridge.com

THL Partners has agreed to buy $180 million of common stock in First BanCorp (NYSE: FPB), the bank holding company for FirstBank Puerto Rico, at $3.50 per share. The deal is part of a larger capital raise designed to secure between $500 million and $550 million. THL would hold a 24.9% ownership stake, following completion of the larger capital raise and conversion into common stock of around $425 million in convertible notes currently held by the U.S. Treasury. www.firstbankpr.com

Unison Capital and CJ Group (South Korea) are jointly bidding on Japanese food-additive maker Hayashibara, according to Reuters. GCA Savvian Group is managing the process. Other bidders include Nagase & Co. and a consortium that includes private equity firm Polaris and Gun-ei Chemical.

Velvet Energy Ltd. has been formed as an oil and gas exploration and production company focused on the Western Canadian Sedimentary Basin. Investors include Warburg Pincus, Trilantic Capital Partners and ZAM Ventures. No financial terms were disclosed. CIBC World Markets advised Velvet Energy on the financing.

Yongye International Inc. (Nasdaq: YONG), a Chinese provider of animal and plant feed, has agreed to raise $50 million in a private placement with Morgan Stanley Private Equity Asia. The preferred shares can convert into common at an initial price of $8.80 per share, compared to yesterday’s opening price of $3.77 per share.

TUESDAY, MAY 31

The Carlyle Group and Japanese brewer Suntory are the final bidders for a 30% stake in Indonesian food company GarudaFoods, according to Reuters. The deal could be worth more than $200 million. Earlier suitors had included 3i Group and Unitas Capital. www.carlyle.com

Dhanlaxmi Bank, a listed Indian bank, has agreed to sell a 19.6% ownership stake to an investor group that includes Bancorp, Multiples Asset Management, Mount Kellett Capital and Wolfensohn Capital Partners. The private placement is valued at approximately $64.4 million.

EQT Partners has invested €40 million to sponsor a management buyout of Coromatic Group, a Nordic data center company, from private equity firm Litorina Kapital. www.eqt.se

Kohlberg Kravis Roberts & Co. has agreed to acquire Academy Sports + Outdoors, a Katy, Texas-based sports, outdoor and lifestyle retailer. No financial terms were disclosed. Academy Sports + Outdoors has 131 locations in 11 states, and generated approximately $2.7 billion in 2010 revenue. The founding Gochman family will retain a minority ownership position. www.kkr.com

TDR Capital, a British private equity firm, has agreed to acquire Ausco Modular, an Australian modular homebuilder, from Waco International for approximately A$650 million. www.ausco.com.au

Waterland Private Equity is in talks to acquire a position in Omega Pharma a listed Belgian drug company, according to newspaper De Tijd. The company has a current market cap just south of €900 million.www.waterland.nu