At a glance
| Latest fund | THL Equity Fund X, $6.3B (May 2026) S5 |
|---|---|
| Deal types | Platform, Add-on, Growth S2 |
| Geography | North America, Europe S3 |
| Sectors | Healthcare Services, Software & SaaS, IT Services & MSP, Wealth Management, Accounting & Professional Services, Industrial & Manufacturing, Construction Services |
What THL Partners buys
THL Partners, long known as Thomas H. Lee Partners, is a Boston private equity firm founded in 1974. It invests in three areas: healthcare, financial and essential services, and technology. Within them it works from a short list of subsectors it calls Identified Sector Opportunities, which include pharma services, home-based care, healthcare IT, insurance, wealth and fund services, professional services, infrastructure services, vertical software, IT operations and industrial automation. It mostly buys majority stakes, often from other private equity owners or from founders, and says it has backed more than 65 founder-led companies. It also runs a separate Automation Fund.
THL describes its targets as middle-market growth companies, but its deals are large. It closed THL Equity Fund X with $6.35 billion of investable capital in May 2026, and its 2026 purchase of Celerion was priced at $1.8 billion, about 12 times EBITDA of $150 million according to an Axios Pro report THL reposted. It publishes no size range. Smaller companies are most likely to meet THL as add-ons: its portfolio companies have completed more than 700 of them.
Recent deals
Announced in the 24 months before October 22, 2026.
| Date | Company | Type | Sector | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aug 2026 | Queue-itAgreed to take a majority stake in the Copenhagen online traffic management software company | Platform | Software & SaaS | Source |
| Aug 2026 | PaveMastersMajority investment in the Western US asphalt maintenance platform; Northern Lakes Capital sold, and the founder and CEO stay on | Platform | Construction Services | Source |
| Jul 2026 | AMISold the firmware company to Lattice Semiconductor and kept an equity stake in Lattice | Exit | Software & SaaS | Source |
| Jun 2026 | CelerionClosed the $1.8 billion purchase of the clinical pharmacology research company from H.I.G. Capital, announced in April | Platform | Healthcare Services | Source |
| May 2026 | THL Equity Fund XFinal close of the tenth flagship fund with $6.35 billion of investable capital | Fund close | Source | |
| Aug 2025 | Headlands ResearchAgreed to buy the North American clinical trial site network from KKR | Platform | Healthcare Services | Source |
Portfolio by sector
From the firm's portfolio page S3.
Automation, Provider & Payor Services
- Prescient Logistics
Bank Technology
- Odessa
- Rate
Commercial & Industrial Services and Distribution
- PaveMasters
Healthcare
- Professional Physical Therapy
- Smile Doctors
Healthcare IT, Provider & Payor Services
- Qventus
Healthcare IT, Provider & Payor Services, Vertical Software
- IMO Health
Home and Community-Based Care
- Autism Home Care Holdings
- Hospice Care
- Senior Home Care Holdings
Industrial Technology
- Brooks Automation
- FORTNA
- Kinexon
- Phytech
- RightHand Robotics
Industrial Technology, Vertical Software
- AutoStore
- FourKites
Insurance
- AmeriLife
- Carpe Data
- Hexure
Insurance, Professional Services
- YA Group
IT Operations & Data
- Ashling Partners
Life Science Tools & Diagnostics, Pharma Services
- CSafe
MedTech Products, Provider & Payor Services
- Agiliti Health
Office of CXO
- Bazaarvoice
- Bynder
- Inriver
Pharma Services
- Adare Pharma Solutions
- Celerion
- Headlands Research
- Red Nucleus
Professional Services, Wealth & Fund
- Hightower Advisors
- Standish Management
Technology
- Auction.com
Vertical Software
- CARET
Greymont’s take
How THL Partners fits a seller
THL fits owners whose company sits inside one of its chosen subsectors and is either big enough to anchor a platform or a good add-on for one. Its August 2026 PaveMasters deal shows the pattern on the services side: it bought a Western US asphalt maintenance platform from another sponsor, kept the founder and CEO involved, and plans to keep adding local operators. That is how most owners of paving, infrastructure or commercial service businesses would meet THL: through a sale to PaveMasters or a similar platform.
Owners of IT consulting or automation services firms can look at Ashling Partners, which THL backed with growth capital in 2021. An owner should ask which subsector team covers the business, how many add-ons the platform closed in the past year, and how long THL expects to hold it.
Questions owners ask
Is THL Partners the same firm as Thomas H. Lee Partners?
Yes. Its legal name is still Thomas H. Lee Partners, L.P., which appears on its website, but its press releases now use THL Partners or THL. The firm was founded in Boston in 1974.
What size of company does THL buy?
It publishes no range. Its tenth flagship fund closed at $6.35 billion in May 2026, and its Celerion deal was priced at $1.8 billion, so new platforms tend to be large. Smaller businesses usually meet THL as add-ons to its portfolio companies.
Does THL buy services businesses as well as software?
Yes. Alongside its software holdings it owns services companies such as PaveMasters in asphalt maintenance, YA Group in insurance claims and property consulting, Hightower in wealth management and Professional Physical Therapy in outpatient rehab.
Does THL work with founders?
Yes. The firm says it has backed more than 65 founder-led or founder-influenced companies across ten flagship funds. In its 2026 Celerion and PaveMasters deals, the founders were quoted as staying involved with the business.
Sources
- S1THL Partners home page Accessed October 22, 2026
- S2THL: Who we are Accessed October 22, 2026
- S3THL: Portfolio Accessed October 22, 2026
- S4THL: News & Insights Accessed October 22, 2026
- S5THL Partners Raises $6.35 Billion of Investable Capital for Fund X (May 4, 2026) Accessed October 22, 2026
- S6THL: How we invest Accessed October 22, 2026
- S7THL: Infrastructure Services Accessed October 22, 2026
- S8THL: IT Operations & Data (lists the 2021 Ashling Partners release under the Thomas H. Lee Partners name) Accessed October 22, 2026
- S9THL buying clinical research organization Celerion for $1.8B (Axios Pro, reposted by THL, April 22, 2026) Accessed October 22, 2026
- S10Celerion Announces Majority Investment from THL Partners (April 22, 2026) Accessed October 22, 2026
- S11THL: Founder-Led Companies and the Next Phase of Scale (September 18, 2026) Accessed October 22, 2026
- S12THL portfolio: Ashling Partners Accessed October 22, 2026
- S13AmeriLife Announces Strategic Investment from Genstar Capital (June 13, 2022) Accessed October 22, 2026
Compiled by Greymont Advisors from public sources, including the firm’s own website and press releases. Greymont is not affiliated with THL Partners. Figures are as reported on the dates shown and may have changed. Request a correction