PE Firms Team Up to Buy CROs

The contract research organization (CRO) industry continues to consolidate at a rapid pace in response to growing demand from pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies. But pharma and biotech serve as the customers in this industry, not the acquirers. Nearly all the buyers in 2017 are other CRO companies that are seeking scale. Private equity is also joining the party, accounting for the remaining portion of deals, including the largest disclosed deal this year. Last month, INC Research Holdings (NASDAQ: INCR) paid $4.6 billion for inVentiv Health, a CRO that also counts Advent International and Thomas H. Lee Partners as equal equity holders. The firms will retain their stakes following... Read More »

PE Firms Are Big on CROs

Private equity firms are taking big stakes in contract research organizations (CROs) in 2017. Through May 3, 12 CRO deals have been announced this year, up 140% from the same period last year, when only five deals were announced (these numbers do not include contract manufacturing organization deals). In late April, The Carlyle Group was rumored to be weighing the acquisition of Albany Molecular Research Inc. (NASDAQ: AMRI), a New York-based CRO. A week later, the private equity firm announced the sale of its majority stake in Pharmaceutical Product Development, LLC (PPD), a global contract research organization that provides comprehensive, integrated drug development, laboratory... Read More »