By Arno Schuetze
FRANKFURT, Oct 21 (Reuters) - Dutch medical supplier Mediq
has been put up for sale by its private equity owner Advent in a
potential 1.2 billion euro ($1.4 billion) deal, sources close
to the matter said.
Advent, which is working with Rothschild and HSBC
on the sale, has organised management meetings for
prospective buyers, which have been asked to hand in non-binding
bids in the first week of November, they said.
Buyout groups such as CVC, Bain, BC Partners, Triton and
Pamplona are expected to bid, they added.
Mediq, Advent, the banks and the prospective buyers declined
to comment or were not immediately available for comment.
The firm is being marketed off full-year earnings before
interest, tax, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) of about
90 million euros, though some potential bidders are working with
assumptions of core earnings closer to 70 million euros, the
sources said.
Mediq, which supplies pharmaceuticals and medical gear to
clinics and patients, is expected to be valued at 12-13 times
its expected core earnings, they said, adding that expectations
may change as the deal is still in early stages.
Advent took Mediq private in 2013 for 819 million euros and
has since strengthened the company through a string of
acquisitions, such as that of Britain's H&R Healthcare and
Norway's Puls AS.
The group's Dutch pharmacy chain was sold in 2016, focusing
Mediq on the delivery of medical devices and care solutions to
patients, hospitals and other care institutions.
The company was founded in 1899 as Onderlinge
Pharmaceutische Groothandel (Mutual Pharmaceutical Wholesale
Company), a buying cooperative established by pharmacists and
listed on the Amsterdam stock exchange in 1992.
($1 = 0.8419 euros)
(Additional reporting by Toby Sterling; Editing by Jan Harvey)