LongueVue and Swaney Group Club Up on Apex Dental Buy

LongueVue Capital (LVC), in partnership with Swaney Group Capital (SGC), has acquired Apex Dental Laboratory Group.

Apex operates a network of 16 dental laboratories across 12 states, employing approximately 400 people. The company's services span the full range of restorative, cosmetic, pediatric, and surgical dental products — crowns, bridges, full arches, dentures, veneers, aligners, surgical guides, and implants — all manufactured in the United States. Every restoration is produced domestically, a deliberate point of differentiation in a market where offshore outsourcing has become common.

The company's brand portfolio sets it apart from most regional lab competitors and includes Kinder Krowns (3D-printed pediatric crowns), Snap-On Smile and Lumineers (cosmetic veneers), and SurgicalGuides.com (surgical implants). Waco, Texas-headquartered Apex is led by co-founder and President Kay Hayden.Apex built its national footprint through 22 acquisitions and three de novo laboratory openings since its 2015 founding. The company positioned itself as an acquisition platform for regional dental labs, offering founding operators the ability to retain their local brand identity and customer relationships under Apex's national infrastructure.

"We are thrilled to partner with LVC and SGC as Apex enters its next phase of growth," said Ms. Hayden. "LVC and SGC are the ideal partners to help us achieve our long-term vision given their deep experience in healthcare manufacturing, collaborative, partnership-oriented approach, and strong track record of operational value creation. We look forward to working together to build on Apex's momentum and further strengthen our customer experience and brand reputation as we execute on our strategic plan."

[caption id="attachment_237208" align="alignright" width="120"] Ryan Nagim[/caption]

"We are excited to add Apex to our expanding healthcare portfolio," said Ryan Nagim, a managing partner at LVC and head of healthcare. "Dental laboratories play a critical role in enabling high-quality care and improving patient outcomes. Apex's commitment to innovation, domestic manufacturing, and service excellence aligns well with our strategy of partnering with healthcare businesses that deliver meaningful value to both patients and providers."

With the close of the transaction, Bill Braun has joined LVC as an operating partner and will take the role of executive chairman of Apex. He previously served as CEO and president of DDS Lab, one of the largest national dental laboratory platforms in the United States.

"Apex has assembled a strong foundation for growth with a talented team," said Mr. Braun. "I look forward to partnering with management, LVC, and SGC to elevate the value proposition to our customers, accelerate growth, and further strengthen Apex's position as a leading national dental laboratory platform."

The U.S. dental laboratory industry is large, fragmented, and under consolidation pressure from both private equity platforms and dental service organizations. According to IBISWorld, the U.S. dental laboratory industry had a market size of $7.6 billion in 2026. IBISWorld notes that the industry is highly fragmented, with 4,375 businesses operating in the U.S., and that the rise of dental service organizations is shifting market power toward large, centralized groups — prompting lab consolidation and driving demand for scaled, technology-enabled platforms with the capital and infrastructure to serve DSO (dental service organization) accounts.



Globally, the market is on a stronger growth trajectory: according to Grand View Research, the global dental laboratories market was valued at $24.3 billion in 2025 and is projected to reach $40.8 billion by 2033, a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 6.8%, driven by rising demand for restorative and cosmetic procedures and rapid adoption of CAD/CAM (computer-aided design/computer-aided manufacturing) and 3D-printing technologies.

LongueVue was founded in 2001 and is headquartered in New Orleans, with an additional office in West Palm Beach, Florida. The firm invests in middle-market companies with sales of $15 million and above and EBITDA of $3 million and above, with a focus on healthcare, business services, transportation and logistics, energy services, and niche manufacturing. LVC has raised more than $800 million in committed capital across five funds, including its most recent flagship, LongueVue Capital Partners IV LP, which closed in 2022 at $365 million.

The LongueVue transaction team included Mr. Nagim, Austin Rees, Mr. Braun, Baker Saslow, Hutton Johnston, and Brennan Louviere.
Swaney Group invests in U.S.-based manufacturing and industrial businesses with a focus on healthcare manufacturing. The firm deploys the Swaney Group Operating System, a proprietary operational improvement model, across portfolio companies from day one. Swaney Group was founded in 2022 by Managing Partner Paul Swaney and is headquartered in St. Petersburg, Florida.
"As both investors and operators, our team is designed to work shoulder-to-shoulder with management teams to drive sustainable performance improvement," said Mr. Swaney. "Apex is a compelling platform with significant opportunity to scale, both organically and through strategic acquisitions, drive efficiency through operational excellence and continued investments in technology and talent and enhance its reputable high-touch service model."

Abacus Finance was the senior secured credit facilities administrative agent and lead arranger in a senior debt financing to support LongueVue’s buy of Apex. Abacus also made an equity co-investment in the transaction. The Abacus transaction team included Tim Clifford, Eric Petersen, Greg Scanlon, and Jeremy Pak.

[caption id="attachment_234643" align="alignright" width="120"] Tim Clifford[/caption]

“We are always happy to support investments from LongueVue in one of their core industry verticals,” said Tim Clifford, CEO and founding partner of Abacus Finance. “As in past transactions, our success was a function of our speed, structural flexibility, and certainty of close – key aspects of what we call our Total Partnership Approach.”

Abacus specializes in financing sponsor-led transactions in the lower middle market. Since inception, the firm has closed more than $3.5 billion in financings and targets private debt investments of up to $60 million in companies with EBITDA between $2 million and $15 million. In October 2025, Abacus closed its first Small Business Investment Company vehicle, Abacus Finance SBIC Fund I LP (Fund I), with $262.5 million in capital. The firm secured $87.5 million in private commitments and leveraged the U.S. Small Business Administration’s SBIC program to reach its hard-cap target.

Brown Gibbons Lang was the financial advisor to Apex on this transaction.