NORWALK, Conn.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--The hospital acquisition market decreased in the fourth quarter of 2015, falling 31% from the third quarter’s activity (32 deals). The 22 publicly announced hospital acquisitions were also 29% lower than the transaction volume (31 deals) in the year-ago fourth quarter.
The largest acquisition in the fourth quarter to come with a disclosed price was the acquisition of Al Noor Hospitals Group plc, based in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, by the South African hospital operator Mediclinic International Ltd. for $2.3 billion. Al Noor Hospitals Group provides primary, secondary and tertiary care services through its hospitals and medical centers in the UAE. Mediclinic International operates hospitals throughout South Africa, Namibia, Switzerland and the UAE.
“The weaker performance in the fourth quarter was not surprising, given the hit most publicly traded hospital companies’ stocks took, beginning in the third quarter,” commented Lisa Phillips, Editor of the Health Care M&A Report, which publishes the data. With 102 announced acquisitions in this sector for the full year, 2015 posted a 3% increase over 2014 in number of announced hospital acquisitions. “In the United States, big hospital deals were scarce in 2015. Most transactions involved smaller, community-based hospitals,” stated Phillips. This market is expected to remain active in 2016, with consolidation occurring in large and small markets.
All quarterly results are published in The Health Care M&A Report for all 13 sectors of health care, which is part of the Health Care M&A Information Source. For more information, or to order the report, call 800-248-1668. Irving Levin Associates, Inc. was established in 1948 and has headquarters in Norwalk, Connecticut. The company publishes research reports and newsletters, and maintains databases on the health care and senior housing M&A markets.
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