Prudential Fight With Cerberus Puts Yearbook Maker in Peril

Creditors are trying to force one of the biggest publishers of high school and college yearbooks into bankruptcy amid a battle for control between Prudential Financial and Cerberus Capital Management.

In a lawsuit filed Friday, Prudential and Falcon Strategic Partners said Cerberus took advantage of the Covid-19 pandemic to wrongly seize control of American Achievement Corp. after it defaulted on a $330 million loan.

AAC provides graduation products like jewelry, school portraits and caps and gowns, but sales have slumped with the coronavirus raging, according to papers filed in a Dallas bankruptcy court. When AAC defaulted, Cerberus allegedly used ...