Walgreens Boots Alliance (NASDAQ: WBA) is putting the pedal to the metal in its $392 million deal to secure full ownership of home-based care company CareCentrix.
The Walgreens Boots Alliance (WBA) is a Fortune 500 health care and retail powerhouse and parent company of the Walgreens retail pharmacy chain. Like its rival CVS Health (NYSE: CVS), the company has been building up its health care delivery services with an emphasis on primary care and services in the home.
WBA in August acquired a 55% majority stake in CareCentrix for $330 million. CareCentrix is valued at $800 million net of debt.
“We continue to see strong results and potential for growth from our partnership with CareCentrix. Our full acquisition further accelerates our transformation to become a consumer-centric healt hcare company, leveraging innovative platforms that extend our capabilities into fast-growing segments of health care,” WBA CEO Roz Brewer in a statement. “CareCentrix is key to offering services to our patients at every stage of the care continuum, and to driving long-term, sustainable growth as part of our U.S. health care strategy.”
Hartford, Connecticut-based CareCentrix manages care for 19 million members through a network of roughly 7,400 locations across more than 25 states, providing home nursing, durable medical equipment, home infusion, and in-home palliative care. CareCentrix delivered pro forma sales of $1.5 billion during fiscal year 2021, WBA reported.
The full acquisition is subject to limited customary closing conditions and is expected to close by March 2023, according to WBA. In WBA’s fiscal year 2021, the company will continue as a distinct business and brand within Walgreens following the full acquisition.
This transaction deepens WBA’s reach into the home-based care space. It comes on the heels of prior investments in home-based primary care company VillageMD and the home health and hospice provider BrightSpring Health Services.
“Home is an exciting area for us to continue to grow,” Dr. Sashi Moodley, chief clinical officer for Walgreens Health, said at Home Health Care News’ Capital+Strategy event in March. “We want to orchestrate that journey, and we’ll look to partners to be able to play in the different spaces to help us again manage populations from a risk-based perspective, which is the ultimate goal.”
Companies featured in this article:
BrightSpring Health Services, CareCentrix, CVS Health Corporation, VillageMD, Walgreens Boots Alliance
