Britain’s largest operator of private hospitals is in talks with a pack of buyout firms about a takeover that would result in it becoming the latest FTSE-250 company to disappear from the London stock market.
Sky News has learnt that private equity firms including Bridgepoint and Triton Partners are exploring bids for Spire Healthcare Group, which runs nearly 40 of the UK’s biggest private hospitals.
City sources said the pair were among a broader group of parties which had expressed interest in making offers for the company ahead of a deadline set by its advisers this week.
Advent International and Bain Capital are also said to have made contact with Rothschild, which is running the process, but are not expected to progress further.
Chaired by Sir Ian Cheshire, the City grandee who has run DIY chain B&Q’s parent, Kingfisher, and now also chairs the commercial property group Land Securities, Spire’s board is said to be keen to progress discussions with prospective bidders in the coming weeks.
If it progresses, any deal about a takeover of the company is expected to be agreed within the next few months, an insider said this weekend.
A number of other financial investors and overseas trade buyers are also thought to be part of the process, which was initiated amid pressure from major shareholders.
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Bridgepoint’s interest is particularly intriguing because it was the owner of Oasis Dental Care, a large dentistry chain, during a period it was run by Justin Ash – who is now chief executive of Spire.
Triton Partners is an experienced healthcare industry investor, owning assets such as Pharmanovia, a speciality producer of prescription medicines.
In addition to its hospitals network, Spire runs more than 50 clinics, medical centres and consulting rooms across the UK.
It is the largest provider of hip and knee operations in the country.
The company also operates a network of private GP practices, as well as providing occupational health services to hundreds of corporate clients.
In total, it works with nearly 9,000 consultants and employs thousands of people.
In 2024, it delivered care to over 1.3 million patients.
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Leading investors in Spire have been pushing for corporate action to arrest its flagging share price, including exploring options to realise value from its property estate, much of which it owns on a freehold basis.
In the wake of a Sky News report last September, Spire confirmed it was “actively evaluating actions that could drive long-term sustainable shareholder value”.
“As part of this review, it has commenced discussions with a number of parties in relation to a range of potential options, which may include (but is not limited to) a potential sale of the Company, value generation from the Hospital property estate and increased strategic focus on private payors,” it reiterated in December.
In a trading update that month, the company said full-year adjusted earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation would be at the lower end of a forecast range of £270m-£285m.
While private hospital capacity has increasingly been earmarked to perform routine operations on NHS patients, budget constraints have intervened to restrict the number of such procedures being carried out.
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Spire was formed in 2007 when BUPA sold its hospitals division to Cinven, the private equity firm.
A 29.9% stake in the company is now owned by Mediclinic Group, a private healthcare provider established in South Africa in 1983.
In 2021, some of Spire’s leading shareholders rejected a 250p-a-share offer from Australia’s Ramsay Healthcare, saying the proposal undervalued the business.
Spire’s stock has fallen by more than 23% over the last year.
On Friday, it closed at 178.2p, giving the company a market capitalisation of just under £725m.
Any bid would need to be at a very significant premium to that level in order to win the backing of major investors.
Spokespeople for Spire, Advent, Bain, Bridgepoint and Triton all declined to comment.
