Stephen A. Koffler, 62; Investment Banker Handled Major Deals

Stephen A. Koffler, 62, an investment banker who engineered the leveraged buyout of Jenny Craig Inc. and handled Roy Disney’s financing of L.A. Gear Inc., died of cancer Friday in Los Angeles.

Born in Providence, R.I., Koffler earned a doctorate in solid-state physics and material science engineering at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute. But he chose a career in finance, working on Wall Street and then moving to California as senior financial executive of Mattel Inc.

Koffler eventually had his own investment firm, Koffler & Co., which handled the sale of Jenny Craig to Deutsche Bank for $120 million in 2002. He also served as managing director of the Los Angeles office of Merrill Lynch & Co., where he arranged Disney’s $100-million rescue of L.A. Gear in 1991 and became a member of its board.

Koffler also was managing director of the Los Angeles offices of Smith Barney, Sutro & Co. and, after it purchased his firm earlier this year, Barrington Associates. He served on the boards of the Greater Los Angeles Zoo Assn., the Los Angeles Opera and the St. John’s Health Center Foundation.