In October, the sale of Mr. Rooter parent, The Dwyer Group, to Riverside Co., a private equity firm, was completed. This is the first of many public-to-private acquisitions Riverside has planned for the coming year.

The Dwyer group has become privately held by Riverside and other stockholders, including members of the Dwyer family and senior management.

Riverside paid $6.75 per share to Dwyer's public stockholders who were not participating in the management buyout, which represented a premium of approximately 59 percent over the $4.25 closing price on May 9, 2003, the last trading day before the announcement of the transaction.

With one of the strongest brand name presences in the industry, Dwyer Group supports approximately 800 franchisees in North America and 275 franchisees in 15 other countries. It generates roughly $400 million in annual retail sales.