Forsyth Capital Investors has acquired a majority stake in Machine Solutions Inc., a Flagstaff, Ariz.–based provider of process and testing solutions to the medical device market. No financial terms weredisclosed.www.machinesolutions.com
Hearthside Food Solutions, a bakery company owned by Wind Point Partners, has acquired Michigan-based Roskam Granola for an undisclosed amount. www.hearthsidefoods.com
JH Partners and the Highland Consumer Fund have acquired a majority stake in J.McLaughlin, a Brooklyn, N.Y.-based clothing retailer centered around the “preppy lifestyle.” No financial terms were disclosed.www.jmclaughlin.com
The Blackstone Group is backing billionaire Nicolas Berggruen’s bid for Kaufhof, a German and Belgian department store currently owned by Metro. Blackstone would be participating as a real estate investor on the competitive deal, which could be worth upwards of $4 billion. www.blackstone.com
Nomura International of Japan is in talks to sell its domestic real estate and research units, according to the FT. Suitors include KKR and TPG Capital. www.nomura.com
Kohlberg Kravis Roberts & Co. has agreed to acquire Samson Investment Co., a privately-held oil and gas exploration and production company, for $7.2 billion. The deal is expected to close by year-end, and would be the largest private equity deal of 2011. KKR’s equity partners on the deal are Crestview Partners, Natural Gas Partners and Japan’s Itochu Corp. Under terms of the agreement, KKR and its partners will acquire all of Samson’s assets, with the exception of its onshore Gulf Coast and offshore Gulf of Mexico assets — which will continue to be owned by the founding Schusterman family. That means at least partial interests in more than 10,000 wells in the U.S., plus operations of over 4,000 wells in such areas as Bakken shale fields.