Prominent international private equity companies and major Indian healthcare companies are preparing to bid for the Sahyadri Hospitals as the company extends its bidding deadline. As per media reports, the bidders include prominent indian healthcare groups like Max Healthcare, Manipal Hospitals, and private equity companies like KKR, Blackstone, and EQT Partners.
Sahyadri Hospitals was bought by the Canadian fund, Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan Board, for Rs 2500 crore in 2019. The company will go for the bid in the range of Rs 4500 to 5000 crore, says a report by The Economic Times.
Several other equity players, including the pharma and power giant Torrent Group and private equity firm Warburg Pincus, have also shown interest in acquiring Sahyadri Hospitals.
Sahyadri Hospitals: Recent M&A action
Sahyadri Hospitals is one of the biggest hospital chains operating in Maharashtra. Founded in 1994 by Charudatt Apte, Nitin Desai, and Sadanand Bapat, the group currently operates 11 hospitals in four cities of Maharashtra. The founders of the company sold the majority stake to the private equity company Everstone Capital for about Rs 1000 crore in 2019.
Since the acquisition by the Canadian fund, Sahyadri Hospitals has been on the path of expansion. In 2023, the company invested about Rs 750 crore to expand its operations in Maharashtra. As for the financials of the company, according to a report by Outlook Business, in FY25, it generated about Rs 240 crore in Ebitda.
Is timing an advantage?
India’s healthcare sector has seen some major mergers and acquisitions in the last few years. Manipal Hospitals acquired an 84 percent stake in AMRI Hospital in 2023 in a deal worth Rs 2400 crore. Private Equity companies KKR and EQT have also acquired significant stakes in healthcare chains BMH and AIG Hospitals.
Sahyadri Hospitals currently has a total capacity of 1300 beds and operates with a strength of 2500 clinicians and 3500 supporting staff members. The company’s strong presence and brand name in the state of Maharashtra, combined with a good Ebitda, make it a lucrative deal for the private equity as well as healthcare companies in the current state of India’s healthcare business.