Tracking when private companies are nearing a sale, recap, or financing event has always been a guessing game. With thousands of sponsor-backed firms spread across sectors and geographies, most deal teams are forced to react after the market moves.
Investors, bankers, and service providers struggle to know which private companies are gearing up for a transaction or capital raise. Signals are scattered, opaque, and nearly impossible to track across thousands of PE- and VC-backed businesses.
Dakota centralizes those signals (holding periods, funding rounds, platform acquisition dates, ownership changes, and exit timing patterns) into one predictive transaction-readiness tool. Instead of waiting for headlines, users can see which companies are showing the strongest likelihood of pursuing a sale, recapitalization, or new financing before the market knows.
Below is today’s list of five PE- or VC-backed companies that, based on their hold period, financing stage, and last transaction date, appear to be credible candidates for a sale or next-round raise.
Nothing is guaranteed, but these companies fall squarely within the timing windows where sponsors typically look to generate liquidity or secure additional capital.
Sourced from Dakota Sponsor Backed Companies.
1. Tropicana Brands Group
Tropicana Brands Group is a leading producer of fruit juices, smoothies, and other beverages, renowned for its commitment to freshness and quality. The company sources its fruits from the best-growing regions, ensuring that each product delivers a refreshing and nutritious experience to consumers.
- Sector: Consumer Staples
- Industry: Food Products
- Last known transaction date: Acquisition by PAI Partners in August 2021.
- Major sponsors/backers: PAI Partners.
- Why timing suggests a near-term transaction: As of 2025, Tropicana is ~4+ years post-PE platform deal (Aug 2021), right around/beyond the ~4-year PE hold-period when sponsors often pursue a sale, recap, or sponsor-to-sponsor transaction.
2. Foster Farms
Foster Farms is a privately held poultry company based in Livingston, California, specializing in producing all-natural chicken and turkey products free from preservatives, additives, and injected sodium enhancers. Their product range includes fresh whole chickens, pre-marinated, ready-to-cook, and fully cooked items, catering to home cooks, retailers, warehouse clubs, and food service customers.
- Sector: Consumer Staples
- Industry: Food Products
- Last known transaction date: July 2022, Acquisition by Atlas Holdings
- Major sponsors/backers: Atlas Holdings
- Why timing suggests a near-term transaction: As of 2025, Foster Farms is ~3 years post-buyout (July 2022) and entering the back half of the typical 3–5 year PE hold window for large food manufacturing platforms. Given ongoing consolidation in protein and packaged foods, the company is approaching a period when sponsors often evaluate a sale, recapitalization, or strategic transaction.
3. Daily Harvest
Daily Harvest is a subscription-based food delivery service offering healthy, frozen, pre-portioned meals, including smoothies, soups, bowls, lattes, and breakfast options. Founded in 2015 by Rachel Drori, the company aims to make nutritious eating convenient by delivering organic, plant-based foods directly to consumers' freezers.
- Sector: Consumer Staples
- Industry: Food Products
- Last known funding round: Series D, $77M, announced November 2021.
- Major sponsors/backers: Led by Lone Pine Capital, with participation from Lightspeed Venture Partners and existing investors.
- Why timing suggests a near-term transaction: As of 2025, Daily Harvest is ~4 years post–Series D (November 2021), exceeding the typical ~24-month late-stage venture clock. Companies at this stage often evaluate a strategic minority investment, structured growth recap, or M&A, particularly as scaled, brand-led consumer staples platforms attract interest from strategics and consumer-focused private equity buyers.
4. Little Spoon
Little Spoon is a New York-based company specializing in delivering organic, fresh baby and toddler meals directly to consumers. Their product line includes organic baby food, early finger foods, toddler and kids meals, smoothies, snacks, and more, all designed to provide healthy, convenient, and nutritious options for children.
- Sector: Consumer Staples
- Industry: Food Products
- Last known funding round: Series B, $44M, announced July 2021.
- Major sponsors/backers: Led by Valor Equity Partners, with participation from Kairos HQ
- Why timing suggests a near-term transaction: As of 2025, Little Spoon is ~4 years post–Series B (July 2021), well beyond the typical ~18-month A → B or B → C venture funding clock. Companies at this stage often face pressure to pursue a late-stage raise, strategic minority investment, or M&A, particularly in scaled baby nutrition brands where strategics and PE buyers are active.
5. Partake Foods
Partake Foods is a New York-based company specializing in producing gluten-free, vegan, and allergy-friendly cookies. Their product line includes various flavors such as sprouted grain chocolate chip, double chocolate chip, sweet potato millet, carrot oat, and birthday cake mini cookies, catering to consumers with dietary restrictions and those seeking healthier snack options.
- Sector: Consumer Staples
- Industry: Food Products
- Last known funding round: Series B, $54.5M, announced October 2022.
- Major sponsors/backers: Led by Cleveland Ave’s CAST US fund, Fearless Fund, Supply Change Capital, Kaya Ventures, with returning investors Marcy Venture Partners, CircleUp Growth Partners, Black Star Fund, FF2032, Black Capital
- Why timing suggests a near-term transaction: As of 2025, Partake Foods is ~3 years post–Series B (October 2022), exceeding the typical ~18-month B → C venture funding clock. Companies at this stage often evaluate a Series C, strategic minority investment, or M&A, particularly as scaled better-for-you CPG brands attract interest from both strategics and consumer-focused private equity firms.
Use Dakota’s Sponsor Backed Company Intelligence to Spot Likely Exits Before the Market Does
Dakota’s private company data gives you a real-time view into thousands of sponsor-backed companies, including platform acquisition dates, funding rounds, parent sponsors, add-on activity, and sector categorization.
Instead of guessing where companies are in their lifecycle, you can instantly identify which ones are approaching the typical timing windows for a sale or recap.
Fully integrated into Dakota Marketplace, this dataset enables deal sourcers, investor relations teams, and allocators to anticipate transactions, build targeted outreach lists, and stay ahead of market announcements, every single day.
