A career spanning three decades in private equity doesn’t happen by accident. It requires vision, discipline, and an ability to identify opportunities others overlook. Since founding Waud Capital Partners in 1993, one investor has built a track record that includes over 500 company acquisitions across healthcare and software sectors.
What distinguishes this approach isn’t just the volume of deals, but the deliberate focus on building sustainable businesses. Rather than pursuing quick exits, Waud Capital Partners employs a buy-and-build strategy that averages 10 or more add-on acquisitions per healthcare platform investment.
From Salomon Brothers to GTCR: Foundation Years
The foundation for this investment career began at Salomon Brothers, where Reeve Waud worked in corporate finance and became a founding member of the firm’s venture capital group. That experience provided early exposure to company formation and growth capital deployment.
Following Salomon Brothers, Reeve Waud joined GTCR, a Chicago-based private equity firm. At GTCR, he gained hands-on experience building portfolio companies through acquisitions—some companies were constructed through more than 30 separate deals. This methodical approach to consolidation would later define Waud Capital’s investment strategy.
1993: Launching Waud Capital Partners from Lake Forest
At age 29, Reeve Waud launched Waud Capital Partners as a self-funded, one-person operation in Lake Forest, Illinois. The firm raised its first institutional fund in 1998, marking the transition from solo practitioner to institutional investor. By 2016, the firm had raised a $1.05 billion fourth fund, more than double the size of its previous fund.
Building Behavioral Health Through Acadia Healthcare
Perhaps the most visible example of this acquisition-driven strategy is Acadia Healthcare. Reeve Waud founded Acadia in December 2005 as a platform for consolidating behavioral health facilities. The company grew from a startup into one of the nation’s largest behavioral healthcare providers, completing an IPO in 2011. Today, Acadia operates 260 facilities across 40 states and Puerto Rico with approximately 11,400 beds.
Reeve Waud continues to serve as Chairman of Acadia’s Board of Directors, maintaining an active role 20 years after the company’s founding
The Medical Device Strategy: Mopec Group Acquisition
The pattern continues with recent transactions. In January 2025, Waud Capital Partners announced the acquisition of Mopec Group, a vertically integrated supplier of pathology equipment. Founded in 1992 and based in Madison Heights, Michigan, Mopec provides equipment and services to anatomic pathology laboratories.
Kyle Lattner, Partner at Waud Capital, explained the rationale: “This investment is part of our dedicated Medical Device & Supply Services campaign we launched in partnership with Brad Staley.” The deal exemplifies the firm’s approach of partnering with experienced executive talent—Brad Staley, with over 25 years in healthcare operating roles, will serve as Mopec Group’s Executive Chairman.
Since its founding, Waud Capital Partners has completed more than 460 investments, including both platform companies and add-on acquisitions. The firm manages approximately $4.6 billion in assets as of December 31, 2022.
