American Securities, whose earliest roots can be traced back to the late 1940s, has made the decision to narrow its investment strategy and reduce headcount in response to recent fundraising challenges.

Per Buyouts, the firm is in the process of laying off staff as it manages a slower-than-expected fundraising process for its ninth flagship fund. Among those departing are managing directors Helen Chiang and Loren Easton, who have transitioned to senior adviser roles. The firm has also cut positions across its Resources Group, which provides operational support to portfolio companies, as well as a number of mid-level investment professionals.
The firm had initially targeted $7 billion for American Securities Partners IX when it launched in late 2022, the same size as its 2019 vintage predecessor. Current expectations are now substantially lower, with internal guidance said to be circling around a final number of $3 billion.
Fundraising efforts may have faced headwinds beyond just general market conditions — most notably, two complete write-offs for investments made out of the firm’s seventh fund (MCS and Air Methods).
The raise also coincided with a bitter and well-publicized divorce for founder Michael Fisch, which included several unfavorable tabloid features published throughout 2023. The unwanted publicity and general succession planning concerns are thought to have further cooled interest from potential limited partners.
American Securities is now planning to refocus its strategy on core sectors where it has historically seen the best performance: industrials, B2B services, and essential services. Non-core areas like consumer and certain healthcare sectors will be de-emphasized.
The 2016 vintage American Securities Partners VII was marked at 13.5 percent net IRR (1.85x TVPI) as of March 31st, and the 2019 vintage fund VIII was held at 18.8 percent net IRR (1.49x TVPI) as of December 2023.