Atlanta Capital Partners, LLC acts as an advisor in ESOP transactions by assembling a team of experienced professionals.  ESOPs are most commonly used as an exit strategy to provide a market for the shares of departing owners of successful, closely-held companies, while allowing the seller to fully defer taxation on the gains. 

Facts About ESOPS

An ESOP is an employee benefit plan, in which the employees of a company become owners of stock in that company.  Only an ESOP is required by law to invest primarily in the securities of the sponsoring employer.  An ESOP is unique among qualified employee benefit plans in its ability to borrow money.  As a result, "leveraged ESOPs" may be used as a technique of corporate finance.

Additionally, employees are not required to contribute personal funds or credit for the acquisition; rather the purchase is conducted in the form of a contribution, similar to other tax-qualified retirement plans. 

Large and Small Companies

Because public companies generally have more employees than private ones, most ESOP participants are employees of public companies.  However, ESOPs can be any size company.  Currently, 12,000 smaller companies join such well known brands as Publix, United Airlines, UPS , Wal-Mart, Lowes, AVIS, Charles Schwab, WINCO, and Morgan Stanley in the ranks of employee ownership.

If your company currently has greater than $1.5 Million in EBITDA, please contact us for more information on our ESOP advisory services.

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