What HBM Holdings does

HBM Holdings is a privately held industrial conglomerate headquartered in St. Louis, Missouri, established in 2012 by the Harry B. Mathews Trust to diversify the legacy of Mississippi Lime Company (founded 1907). The company acquires and operates middle-market industrial businesses with EBITDA between $20-50 million and margins above 15%, focusing on specialty chemicals (lime, calcium-based products, specialty adhesives), engineered flow control devices, precision machined components, and agricultural fertilizers. HBM's core portfolio comprises Mississippi Lime Company (the largest lime facility in the Americas), Schafer Industries (precision gears and off-road transaxles/brake assemblies), HarperLove (specialty adhesives for corrugated packaging), Control Devices (engineered flow control valves and regulators), and Calcium Products (pelletized limestone and gypsum fertilizers for specialty agriculture), augmented by bolt-ons including Singleton Birch (UK lime), Valley Minerals, Gilmore (oil & gas valves), Sherwood Valve, and Burnett Inc. (water treatment).

HBM operates a "supported autonomy" model: the parent provides patient long-term capital free of PE-style exit pressure, shared services in HR, finance, and IT, cross-portfolio best-practice sharing (e.g., Talent Connect events, Finance Summits), and acquisition support, while each operating company retains its brand, leadership, and day-to-day operating independence. Revenue is generated through B2B hardware sales via three distribution channels — enterprise direct sales, distributor/wholesale networks, and OEM embedded partnerships — serving end markets in Aerospace & Defense, Environmental, Medical Devices & Instruments, Packaging, Mining & Mineral, Agriculture, Off-Highway Mobility, and Oil & Gas, with operating geographies spanning the United States (across all major regions) and the United Kingdom.

The firm maintains a central corporate development function staffed by experienced M&A professionals (including a VP recruited from Graybar) that has driven at least seven disclosed acquisitions between 2017 and 2026, capped by the largest platform acquisition in company history (Calcium Products, September 2024) and a $100 million organic capacity build-out in Blair, Nebraska. Pricing is determined individually by each portfolio company through direct sales relationships and is not publicly disclosed.

Name

HBM Holdings

Legal name

HBM Holdings Company

Website

http://hbmholdings.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2012

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

HBM Holdings is a privately held St. Louis-based industrial conglomerate that acquires and operates middle-market industrial businesses (EBITDA $20-50M) in specialty chemicals, flow control, precision components, and ag inputs, serving enterprise customers across the US and UK.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

St Louis

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices11 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

Personnel, Supply Chain, Operations, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Industrial Manufacturing Revenue: HBM Holdings generates revenue through its portfolio of industrial manufacturing companies. The company acquires and grows middle-market industrial businesses, providing capital, operating insight, and leadership support while giving companies autonomy to run their businesses. Revenue comes from the sale of industrial products including calcium products, lime products, specialty adhesives, flow control solutions, precision gears, and agricultural fertilizers.

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

HBM Holdings is a privately held industrial conglomerate that acquires and operates middle-market industrial companies in specialty chemicals, flow control, precision machining, and agricultural fertilizers. The company provides long-term strategic capital, operational expertise, and shared services to a portfolio of wholly-owned operating subsidiaries while preserving their entrepreneurial autonomy. Revenue is generated through the sale of industrial products manufactured by portfolio companies including lime and calcium products, custom gears and transaxles, specialty adhesives, engineered flow control valves, and calcium-based fertilizers.

Product overview

HBM Holdings operates as a privately held industrial conglomerate that acquires and manages a portfolio of five distinct portfolio companies, each operating as an independent business unit with supported autonomy. The portfolio consists of: Mississippi Lime Company (MLC), a leading manufacturer of calcium products including hydrated lime, quicklime, ground calcium and precipitated calcium carbonate; Schafer Industries, a producer of high-precision custom-engineered gears, machined parts, transaxles and brake assemblies for off-road vehicles; HarperLove, a provider of specialty adhesives, performance additives and wet-strength resins for corrugated packaging; Control Devices, a designer and manufacturer of engineered flow control solutions for gas, air and liquid markets; and Calcium Products, a manufacturer of calcium-based fertilizers for agriculture. Each company maintains its own brand, leadership team and operations while benefiting from HBM's resources, capital and strategic guidance.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Mississippi Lime Company (MLC) A fully integrated system for mining limestone and manufacturing high-quality, food-grade calcium products and pulverized limestone. Mississippi Lime Company operates the largest lime facility in the Americas and supplies high-calcium lime products, hydrated lime, quicklime, ground calcium and precipitated calcium carbonate to industrial customers.
• Schafer Industries A leading producer of high-precision, custom-engineered gears and machined parts for a wide range of applications, as well as transaxles, brake assemblies and other components for off-road vehicles.
• HarperLove A leading provider of specialty adhesives, performance additives, and wet-strength resins for corrugated packaging manufacturers.
• Control Devices A leading designer and manufacturer of engineered flow control solutions in the gas, air, and liquid markets. Offers customized and standard valves, condensate traps, refrigerant distributors, and other products for medical systems, air compressors, fire suppression systems, and specialty gas HVACR applications.
• Calcium Products A leading manufacturer and distributor of calcium-based fertilizer products for the specialty agriculture industry. Core products include 98G pelletized limestone and SO4 pelletized gypsum for row and specialty crop growers and the professional turf industry.

Quantifiable outcome

• Record financial performance in 2025 with exceptional results from MLC
• +2 more outcomes

Segments8 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Two partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• Bristol Myers SquibbcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 17 December 2025HBM Holdings entered a global strategic collaboration and license agreement with Bristol Myers Squibb focused on developing therapeutics in immuno-oncology and immunology. The agreement involves candidate drugs and a monoclonal antibody platform.
• Gateway Development CorporationcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 8 July 2025Gateway Development Corporation partnered with Calcium Products (an HBM portfolio company) for the purchase of 113 acres in the Blair South Industrial Park. This partnership supports Calcium Products' $100 million investment to build two new production facilities, including one with rail access to improve logistics across the region.

Scale indicators7 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• CC Industries: Henry Crown family's private industrial holding company that owns and operates niche-leading manufacturing businesses long-term, closely matching HBM's patient-capital, family-controlled industrial holding company model.
• Graymont: One of the largest privately held lime and limestone producers globally, directly comparable to Mississippi Lime Company's core business in high-calcium lime products and calcium-based minerals.
• Harbour Group: St. Louis-based privately held industrial holding company that acquires and operates middle-market industrial and distribution businesses with long-term ownership — extremely similar model to HBM, including overlapping target verticals and management talent pool.
• Lhoist Group: Belgian family-owned global lime producer operating a multi-region mining and manufacturing platform — directly comparable to MLC/Singleton Birch in product line, customer base, and long-hold family ownership.
• Carmeuse: Global, family-controlled lime and mineral products producer — directly comparable to MLC across industrial lime, environmental/water treatment (Burnett overlap), and calcium-based product lines.

Broad incumbents

• Minerals Technologies Inc. Public specialty minerals company serving paper, steel, environmental, and consumer products — overlaps directly with MLC's precipitated calcium carbonate and lime offerings but operates at much larger scale.
• Roper Technologies: Public diversified industrial conglomerate that acquires niche-leading technology and industrial businesses — broadly analogous strategy of holding long-term leaders across multiple verticals, but at vastly greater scale and scope.
• Dover Corporation: Public diversified industrial manufacturer with strong flow control and engineered products businesses — directly comparable to Control Devices/Sherwood Valve and to the portfolio's diversified industrial approach.
• Watts Water Technologies: Public manufacturer of flow control and water treatment products — directly comparable to Control Devices, Sherwood Valve, and Burnett's water treatment focus but at materially larger scale and broader product portfolio.

Emerging players

• American Industrial Partners: Private equity firm focused on industrial sector buyouts — comparable acquisition discipline and middle-market industrial focus, but uses a fund-driven PE model rather than HBM's permanent family holding structure.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/hbm-holdings
• Xx.com/hbmholdings

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles16 records

Subsidiaries10 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A5 records

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about HBM Holdings