Ambea to float in 2010?
publication date: Dec 13, 2009
3i-owned Ambea, the Swedish-Finnish healthcare group, has appointed Morgan Stanley and is planning to float in 2010, according to informed sources. An Ambea spokesman would neither confirm or deny the story, saying: "We don't comment on rumours and speculation."
The group includes care home and domiciliary care group Carema in Sweden and hospital and clinic group Mehiläinen in Sweden. 3i tried and failed to sell it to private equity groups in May 2008 when a price tag of €900m was reported by Bloomberg.
Carema in Sweden dominated the outsourcing boom in 2008 although rival Attendo reckons it has won more than half the contracts more recently. In 2008 Ambea sales rose 11% to SEK5.9bn (€567m) with an operating profit up 36% to SEK 472m (€45m). 2009 will also have seen high growth thanks to the new outsource contracts. Sources say Ambea has low debt levels and that a flotation is eminently feasible.
This follows the news that BC plans to float French care home group Medica. Other private equity healthcare groups which probably have the track record to float soon include Ambea’s Swedish/Finnish rival Attendo.
