The parent of Carl’s Jr.—which got its start in Anaheim and still has major operations there—is being acquired and taken private in a deal valued at $928 million.
Carpinteria-based CKE Restaurants Inc. is being acquired by Boston private equity firm Thomas H. Lee Partners LP for $619 million plus the assumption of $309 million in debt.
CKE has a market value of about $610 million.
The company is going private to “to continue the growth and development of CKE Restaurants,” Chief Executive Andrew Puzder said in a statement.
The deal is expected to close in the second quarter.
The move stands to end nearly 30 years as a public company for CKE, which was founded by Orange County icon Carl Karcher in the 1940s.
Karcher died in 2008.
He and wife Margaret started the business in 1941 after borrowing $311 on their Plymouth and throwing in $15 from her purse to buy a hot dog cart in Los Angeles.
In 1945, the Karchers moved to Anaheim, near Margaret Karcher’s family home, and opened Carl’s Drive-In Barbeque, which grew into Carl’s Jr.
In 1993, financier Bill Foley took control of CKE and moved the company from Anaheim to the Santa Barbara area.
Foley, chairman of Florida-based title insurer Fidelity National Financial Inc., no longer is involved with CKE.
The company’s largest shareholder now is value investor Richard Pickup of Las Vegas. He owns nearly 11% of the company.
