Cliff Atherton Jr.

Managing Director

Cliff is an investment banker with more than 25 years of experience in corporate finance and 34 years of experience teaching finance at the graduate level. He joined GulfStar in 1995 and has completed numerous corporate finance assignments for business owners. Most of Cliff’s clients are entrepreneur- or family-owned businesses with enterprise values between $25 and $250 million. His transaction experience is split evenly between sales to strategic buyers and recapitalizations with private equity firms. His industry experience includes representation of upstream, midstream and downstream energy service companies as well as manufacturers, distributors, and industrial services firms. Cliff served on the faculty of Rice University’s Jones Graduate School of Business for 34 years (full-time 1981 to 1987 and 1989 academic years) and on the faculty of the University of Houston’s Bauer College of Business for five years (1993 to 1997). Prior to joining GulfStar, he was managing director of McKenna & Company from 1992 to 1995, president of Emprise Consulting Group, Inc. from 1990 to 1992 and an independent consultant from 1978 to 1990.

Cliff earned a Bachelor of Arts from Rice University and Ph.D. and Master of Business Administration degrees from The University of Texas. He is also a CFA® charterholder.

Recent Transactions

has been acquired by
a portfolio company of
Industry

Energy, Power & Infrastructure
Industrial Services & Manufacturing
Services
Mergers & Acquisitions

Founded in 1997, FCI is a vertically integrated provider of high-quality forged, heat treated, and machined pressure control connection products for the downstream, midstream, upstream, LNG, marine, aerospace, and defense markets. FCI’s product portfolio along with its forging and heat treat capability are highly complementary to Westbrook’s current offerings and will allow the combined platform to better serve a wider range of customers.

has been acquired by

Industry

Industrial Services & Manufacturing
Services
Mergers & Acquisitions Cross-Border Transactions

Headquartered in Texas City, Texas, Farmers Copper is a leading metal supply company. It is a legacy business descended from Farmers Marine Copper, a company that was founded in Galveston, Texas in 1920 by Les and Sidney Farmer. Farmers Copper supplies copper, brass and bronze alloys to a long-standing customer base across aerospace, marine, defense, oil & gas and electrical market segments in North America. The Company distinguishes itself with its excellent service, custom processing capabilities and outstanding delivery performance. The Company will be integrated into the industry-leading service center network of Wieland Metal Services, a business unit of Wieland.

has received a minority growth investment from

Industry

Industrial Services & Manufacturing
Environmental & Sustainability
Services
Mergers & Acquisitions Raising Capital Cross-Border Transactions

Headquartered in Clackamas, Oregon, PNW operates a full-service ferrous and non-ferrous metal recycling business. The Company sells its recycled metal product to both international and domestic markets. PNW gathers scrap in North America and sells hundreds of thousands of tons of recycled metals to hundreds of domestic and international customers per year. PNW’s services are key to a growing circular economy, offering a low-cost replacement to virgin metal production. Recycled steel scrap saves approximately 70% of energy (95% for aluminum) and 55% of CO2 emissions when compared to virgin materials, according to the World Steel Association.

has been acquired by

Industry

Industrial Services & Manufacturing
Services
Mergers & Acquisitions Cross-Border Transactions

Located in Houston, Texas, Enduro is a global leader in the design and manufacture of non-metallic composite products and solutions that deliver value to its customers. With a history of innovation and industry firsts, its fiber reinforced polymer (FRP) solutions have earned worldwide respect and recognition in many of its businesses, including TUFF SPAN™ building products, electrical cable management, water and wastewater structures, field services and custom FRP manufacturing. Employing diverse, manufacturing capabilities, Enduro provides lasting solutions for challenging conditions in industrial and infrastructure market segments like chemical processing, mining, water, wastewater, metal processing, fertilizer, power, pulp & paper, oil & gas, offshore and marine, food processing and mass transit.

has been acquired by
a portfolio company of
Industry

Industrial Services & Manufacturing
Services
Mergers & Acquisitions

For over 50 years, Powertherm Maxim has provided air intake and exhaust system accessories for large reciprocating engines. The Company’s silencers and catalytic converters abate sound and reduce emissions in the gas compression, power generation, energy infrastructure, marine, and industrial markets. Powertherm Maxim is headquartered in Houston, Texas with branch offices in Odessa and Fort Worth, Texas and El Reno, Oklahoma.

has been acquired by

Industry

Industrial Services & Manufacturing
Environmental & Sustainability
Services
Mergers & Acquisitions

Since 1979, C&D has been the Greater Houston Area’s premier scrap metal recycler. Led by Co-Founders Cindy and Dennis Laviage, C&D has become a household name across Houston given the team’s emphasis on and successful execution of its retail advertising campaigns. The Laviages built unrivaled brand recognition via near-constant television and radio commercials, establishing the now ubiquitous “We Pay You in $2 Bills!” trademark which generated over 14.6 million television and 15.0 million radio impressions in 2021 alone.

GulfStar Group
700 Louisiana Street
Suite 3800
Houston, Texas 77002


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