Franklin Square Provides $150 Million Secured Financing to Latham Pool Products

PHILADELPHIA, July 1, 2015 /PRNewswire/ -- Franklin Square Capital Partners, the largest manager of business development companies (BDCs), announced the origination of a $150 million first lien secured term loan to Latham Pool Products, Inc., the largest manufacturer of in-ground residential swimming pools and components in North America. Latham is a portfolio company of Littlejohn & Company (Littlejohn), a Greenwich, CT based private equity investment firm focused on the middle market.  The financing was provided by FS Investment Corporation (NYSE: FSIC), FS Investment Corporation II (FSIC II) and FS Investment Corporation III (FSIC III), BDCs managed by affiliates of Franklin Square and sub-advised by GSO / Blackstone Debt Funds Management LLC (GDFM), an affiliate of GSO Capital Partners LP (GSO).

Founded as a family business in 1956 and headquartered in Latham, NY, the company manufactures fiberglass pools, automatic safety covers, winter safety covers, packaged pool components and in-ground vinyl liners. Latham serves over 4,000 customer accounts and operates a network of 21 manufacturing facilities in the United States and Canada.

"The scale of our platform allows us to provide customized credit solutions to market leading companies like Latham," said Michael C. Forman, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of FSIC, FSIC II and FSIC III. "We are pleased to work with Littlejohn and look forward to supporting Latham's continued growth."

"Latham has both a diversified product portfolio and a strong presence in the North American pool industry," commented Brad Marshall, Senior Managing Director and Senior Portfolio Manager at GDFM. "With its extensive operating footprint and its history of successful growth, we believe Latham is poised for continued success."

"Franklin Square and GSO provided a single source of financing for our company," said Mark Laven, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Latham Pool Products, Inc. "With financial backing from Franklin Square and GSO and the continued support of Littlejohn, Latham is in a strong position to continue to serve our clients."

About FSIC
FSIC is a publicly traded BDC focused on providing customized credit solutions to private middle market U.S. companies. FSIC seeks to invest primarily in the senior secured debt and, to a lesser extent, the subordinated debt of private middle market companies to achieve the best risk-adjusted returns for its investors. In connection with its debt investments, FSIC may receive equity interests such as warrants or options.

FSIC is advised by FB Income Advisor, LLC, an affiliate of Franklin Square, and is sub-advised by GDFM, an affiliate of GSO. GSO, with approximately $75.0 billion in assets under management as of March 31, 2015, is the credit platform of Blackstone, one of the world's leading managers of alternative investments. For more information, please visit www.fsinvestmentcorp.com.

About FSIC II and FSIC III
FSIC II and FSIC III are publicly registered, non-traded BDCs sponsored by Franklin Square. FSIC II and FSIC III focus primarily on investing in the debt securities of private companies throughout the United States, with the investment objectives of generating current income and, to a lesser extent, long-term capital appreciation for their investors. FSIC II and FSIC III are advised by affiliates of Franklin Square and are sub-advised by GDFM. For more information, please visit www.franklinsquare.com.

About Franklin Square
Franklin Square is a leading manager of alternative investment funds designed to enhance investors' portfolios by providing access to asset classes, strategies and asset managers that typically have been available to only the largest institutional investors. The firm's funds offer "endowment-style" investment strategies that help construct diversified portfolios and manage risk. Franklin Square strives not only to maximize investment returns but also to set the industry standard for best practices by focusing on transparency, investor protection and education for investment professionals and their clients.

Founded in Philadelphia in 2007, Franklin Square quickly established itself as a leader in the world of alternative investments by introducing innovative credit-based income funds, including the industry's first non-traded BDC. As of March 31, 2015, the firm managed approximately $15.7 billion in total assets, including $14.5 billion in BDC assets, making it the largest manager of BDCs. For more information, please visit www.franklinsquare.com.

Contact Information:

Franklin Square Media Team
[email protected]
215-495-1174

Jim Ballan
Senior Vice President,
Investor Relations & Capital Markets
[email protected]
267-439-4375

About Latham Pool Products, Inc. 
Latham Pool Products is the largest manufacturer of swimming pool components and pool accessories in North America. Latham offers a broad product line, including in-ground and above ground vinyl liners, polymer and steel pool wall systems, fiberglass pools, steps, ladders, pool safety covers, automatic pool covers and a variety of other pool related accessories. For more information about Latham Pool Products, visit the company's website at www.lathampool.com.

About Littlejohn & Co. 
Since 1996, Littlejohn & Co. has focused on the fundamental opportunities and challenges faced by companies in the middle market. Littlejohn has successfully partnered with business leaders and stakeholders to make good companies better, to carve out operating divisions of large corporations, and to turn around companies facing operating or financial stress. With over $4 billion under management, the firm is designed to create long-term value for investors and build sustainable success for its portfolio companies through a disciplined approach to engineering change. For more information please go to www.littlejohnllc.com.

Forward-Looking Statements and Important Disclosures
This press release may contain certain forward-looking statements, including statements with regard to the future performance or operations of FSIC, FSIC II, FSIC III or Latham. Words such as "believes," "expects," "projects" and "future" or similar expressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements are subject to the inherent uncertainties in predicting future results and conditions. Certain factors could cause actual results to differ materially from those projected in these forward-looking statements, and some of these factors are enumerated in the filings FSIC, FSIC II and FSIC III make with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. FSIC, FSIC II and FSIC III undertake no obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.

Individual investors and endowments may have different investment horizons, liquidity needs and risk tolerances. In addition, fees that may be incurred by an investor in a fund sponsored by Franklin Square may be different than fees incurred by an endowment investing in similar assets as those in which the funds invest.

SOURCE Franklin Square Capital Partners

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