Direct Response Sold After 13 Years

Morgan Stanley Capital Partners Fund III has completed its sale of Direct Response, an automobile and homeowners insurance company, to Unitrin for $220 million. Metalmark Capital, the manager of Morgan Stanley Capital Partners Fund III, first acquired the company in 1996 for $315 million, which it invested in the company over a few years. A deal for JC Flowers to acquire a 46% stake in the company fell through in 2007.