Zelis owners leaning toward selling stake for $17B
Illustration: Aïda Amer/Axios
Zelis, the health care payer behemoth that has been weighing all avenues of a sale, is now leaning toward selling a 20–25% stake for roughly $17 billion, Bloomberg reports.
Why it matters: Zelis is one of the few A-plus assets out there, and this deal could break the dam for exits in private equity.
Catch up quick: Bain and Parthenon merged Zelis Healthcare and RedCard Systems in 2019 in a deal valuing the combined business at $5.7 billion, and the company has completed a spate of acquisitions since.
- CEO Amanda Eisel told Axios in 2022 that the company planned to position itself for a dual-track process.
- It was reported in January that the Boston-based company started to weigh strategic options.
- Bain and Parthenon are being advised by Goldman Sachs Group Inc. and JPMorgan.
What's next: The private equity firm owners are considering selling a 20% to 25% stake in Zelis, and have received preliminary interest from health insurers, a payments company, buyout firms and sovereign wealth funds, Bloomberg says.
💭 Aaron's thought bubble: Zelis continues to grow and Bain and Parthenon obviously want to take advantage of that. The fact that this deal has been in the works all year speaks volumes about the current landscape, as in other years it likely would have been done already.
The bottom line: While it might be too late to open the floodgates for dealmaking this year (especially with the election around the corner), a successful transaction could change moods ahead of 2025.
Bain and Parthenon did not respond to requests for comment.
