Healthcare dealmaking remained steady entering this year, with the first quarter headlined by mammoth buyouts targeting sizable companies such as Australian private-hospital operator Ramsay Health Care and cloud-based health IT vendor Athenahealth.
Even amid a series of macro headwinds, private equity firms poured billions of dollars into healthcare assets during that period, extending a string of mega-deals that started last year.
If inflationary pressure continues to take a toll on economics and erode corporate margins, PE firms are expected to rotate out of consumer-facing businesses into more defensive assets such as healthcare and energy, according to a recent PitchBook analyst note.
High-profile US PE deals in the first quarter include the $17 billion buyout of healthtech company Athenahealth by Bain Capital and Hellman & Friedman, as well as Clearlake's rollover of Symplr, a healthcare governance, risk and compliance company.
Other investors are looking for ever-larger acquisitions. A KKR-led consortium offered to buy Ramsay Health Care for A$20.1 billion (about $15 billion), which would rank as the largest PE-backed buyout in Australia if the takeover becomes successful.
