Corporate advisor Canterbury Partners has been tapped to run the auction and received indicative bids over the weekend.
Fresh from its $838 million takeover of aged care operator Estia Health, Bain Capital is back for another piece of the pie.
Canterbury Partners has been hired to test buyer appetite and oversee a two-stage auction, sources told this column. Indicative bids were due to be submitted to the advisory boutique over the weekend.Prospective buyers were told BlueCross is forecast to make $400 million revenue in financial year 2024 and $40 million EBITDA. The sector typically trades at 10-times-plus EBITDA or 0.85-times to 0.
Of course, Bain is no stranger to the aged care sector, winning its five-month pursuit of one of Australia’s largest operators,the sector was ripe for more deals saying: “we do see ourselves as a leader, as a consolidator in the sector”. The business was founded in 1993 by David Eccles – who sits on the board alongside Cathy Eccles – and has expanded since, acquiring 10 residences between 1998 and 2000. Sapphire Holdings picked up a 43 per cent stake in 2006 and acquired 3rd Age in 2007, adding six residences to the business. BlueCross merged with Sapphire Care in 2018.in 2021, detailing poor standards, myriad challenges, funding gaps, exploding demand and neglect.