Apr 21, 2022 - Economy & Business

Tabula Rasa asset sale nears

pills and money falling from sky

Illustration: Annelise Capossela/Axios

A portfolio company of BlackRock fund (NYSE: BLK) intends to make a proposal to transact with certain non-core assets of Tabula Rasa Healthcare (Nasdaq: TRHC), according to a letter of intent disclosed in a 13D filing on Thursday.

Why it matters: Tabula Rasa, working with Citigroup, was in advanced discussions regarding the sale of non-core assets, including PrescribeWellness, Axios reported in late March.

  • Sources said then that conversations were being held with PE-backed strategics, with BlackRock-backed Transaction Data Systems among logical buyers of PrescribeWellness. TDS is a pharmacy technology company.
  • PrescribeWellness is a CRM (customer relationship management) tool that’s integrated with over 10,000 independent pharmacy operating systems.
  • BlackRock declined to comment, while Tabula Rasa did not immediately return a request for comment.

State of play: Besides PE-backed portfolio companies, logical buyers would include Omnicell (NASDAQ: OMNCL), should it want to beef up its pharmacy-focused hardware and software presence within independent pharmacies.

Flashback: BlackRock’s perpetual capital fund agreed to acquire a majority interest in Transaction Data Systems in May 2021, with minority investor GTCR retaining a minority interest.

Context: Tabula Rasa has been outspoken about its plans to unload non-core assets to boost profitability, strengthen the balance sheet and become and remain cash flow positive by Q3.

  • The company in February disclosed a letter of intent to sell DoseMeRx, a precision dosing tool used by pharmacists and physicians
  • Tabula Rasa bought PrescribeWellness less than three years ago for $150 million, but current price talk could not be determined.
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