MCLEAN, Va., Jan. 13, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- Gladstone Investment Corporation (NASDAQ: GAIN) ("Gladstone Investment") announced today that on December 27, 2013, it invested $13.0 million in a combination of debt and equity to purchase Meridian Rack & Pinion, Inc. ("Meridian"), doing business as Buy Auto Parts. Gladstone Investment, together with Digital Fuel Capital, a private equity firm focused on e-commerce and digital marketing, and Meridian's existing management team provided the capital in support of the acquisition of the business. Jean-Pierre Gilbertz, the founder of Meridian, also continues to hold a sizeable stake in the company.  One of Gladstone Investment's affiliated companies, Gladstone Capital Corporation (NASDAQ: GLAD), also participated as a co-investor by providing $5.6 million of debt and equity financing on the same terms as Gladstone Investment.

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Founded in 1989 and based in San Diego, CA, Meridian is a provider of aftermarket and OEM replacement automotive parts, which it sells through both wholesale channels and online at www.BuyAutoParts.com.  Meridian distributes a targeted set of product lines, which include replacement turbochargers, air conditioning parts, steering racks, and suspension components.

"We believe that the www.BuyAutoParts.com model of product category depth, in-stock inventory and expert live sales support is the winning formula for the on-line auto parts channel, which has significant opportunity for further penetration in the auto parts industry," said Carson Biederman, President of Digital Fuel Capital.  "We look forward to supporting Meridian's expansion into other product categories and geographies through both organic growth and acquisitions."

"Gladstone is excited to partner with Digital Fuel and the talented management team at Meridian. We look forward to continued growth and expansion, building on the success the management team has achieved over the past few years," said Kyle Largent, Managing Director of Gladstone Investment and Gladstone Capital.

Gladstone Investment Corporation is a publicly traded business development company that seeks to make debt and equity investments in small and mid-sized businesses in the United States in connection with acquisitions, changes in control and recapitalizations. Gladstone Investment has paid 102 consecutive monthly cash distributions on its common stock. Additional information on this transaction can be found at www.gladstonecompanies.com.

For Investor Relations inquiries related to any of the monthly dividend paying Gladstone funds, please visit www.gladstone.com.

Forward-looking Statements:

The statements in this press release regarding the longer-term prospects of Meridian and its management team, and the ability of Meridian to grow and expand are "forward-looking statements." These forward-looking statements inherently involve certain risks and uncertainties in predicting future results and conditions. Although these statements are based on Gladstone Investment's current plans that are believed to be reasonable as of the date of this press release, a number of factors could cause actual results and conditions to differ materially from these forward-looking statements, including those factors described from time to time in Gladstone Investment's filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Gladstone Investment undertakes no obligation to publicly release the result of any revisions to these forward looking statements that may be made to reflect any future events or otherwise, except as required by law.

SOURCE Gladstone Investment Corporation