LabCorp Lands a Global CRO

by | Aug 3, 2017 2:17 pm | CRO, Private Equity

In late July, Laboratory Corp. of America Holdings (NYSE: LH) announced the 6th CRO deal to surpass the $1 billion mark this year. The $1.2 billion deal for Chiltern is its third announced transaction this year, having acquired Mount Sinai’s Clinical Outreach Laboratories (January) and Pathology Associates Medical Laboratories, LLC (February). Despite activity in the Laboratory, MRI & Dialysis sector, LabCorp was on the hunt for a CRO target all year, but with little luck. Back in February, it was rumored that LabCorp was looking to buy Pharmaceutical Product Development, LLC for $8 billion. PPD ended up going to Hellman & Friedman LLC, a long time... Read More »

Pamplona Capital Wins Auction for PAREXEL

by | Jun 28, 2017 7:35 pm | CRO, Other Services

Pamplona Capital Management LLP, a New York-based private equity firm, has been on the hunt for a contract research organization (CRO) for the past year. According to a report from Reuters, it made an unsuccessful bid earlier this year for Pharmaceutical Product Development LLC, a U.S. clinical trials firm valued at more than $9 billion. On June 20, 2017, Pamplona bagged a different target. The firm announced its acquisition of PAREXEL International Corporation (NASDAQ: PRXL) in a going-private transaction. According to other reports, Parexel’s advisers initially accepted PE firm offers, but later opened up the auction to industry players as well. Pamplona outbid rivals including... Read More »

PE Firms Are Big on CROs

by | May 3, 2017 5:53 pm | CRO, Laboratories, MRI & Dialysis, Private Equity

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 »

CRO Deals Are Hot and About to Get Hotter

by | Feb 9, 2017 9:49 pm | CRO, Other Services, Private Equity

The need for outsourced research and development services has caused a huge increase in the number of deals for contract research organizations (CROs) and contract manufacturing organizations (CMOs).  In 2016, 36 acquisitions of CROs and CMOs were announced in 2016, a 157% increase from 2015’s total of 14 deals, according to data reported in the Health Care Services Acquisition Report, 2017. That pace is picking up. In the first six weeks of 2017, six CRO/CMO deals have been announced,with even more to come. Last week, Reuters reported that Laboratory Corp. of America Holdings (NYSE: LH) is in talks to buy Pharmaceutical Product Development LLC (PPD), a portfolio company of Hellman &... Read More »

CROs are back in style for M&A

by | May 31, 2016 8:00 am | Other Services, Private Equity

Contract research organizations (CROs) are changing hands again, all over the world. Since 2010, we’ve recorded 63 transactions in total, with six announced in 2016 already. That’s a strong showing compared with five CRO deals for all of 2015, but not nearly on pace to surpass the 19 deals posted in 2014. Total combined spending, based on the 14 deals with prices disclosed, was $6.5 billion. The largest by far, at $3.9 billion, was for Pharmaceutical Product Development, acquired by then-privately held The Carlyle Group (now NASDAQ: CG). A majority of the deals (63%) were made by other CROs, compared with 16% by private equity firms, the second largest acquirer category.... Read More »