By Echo Wang
NEW YORK (Reuters) – Buyout firm Carlyle Group struck a deal to acquire medical-device maker Baxter’s kidney-care unit Vantive for $3.8 billion, the companies said on Tuesday.
The proceeds from the deal, which is expected to close by early 2025, will help Baxter reduce its debt pile. Baxter, which paid down about $2.8 billion of debt last year after divesting its biopharma unit, had long-term debt of $13.8 billion at the end of 2023.
Baxter started exploring options for its kidney-care units after its $10.5 billion takeover of medical-equipment maker Hill-Rom in 2022. It began the process to carve out Vantive early in 2023.
“Vantive is a strong, growing business with market-leading franchises, and we are delighted to partner with the Vantive team to pursue their strategic vision through the separation from Baxter and transformation into a standalone global business,” said Robert Schmidt, Carlyle’s global co-head of healthcare.
Atmas Health, a healthcare investment platform that was formed by Carlyle in 2022, partnered with the firm on the deal for Vantive.
Baxter’s kidney-care operations generated about $4.5 billion in revenue last year and has more than 23,000 employees.
The Wall Street Journal reported Carlyle’s talks to acquire the Vantive unit in July.
Private equity dealmaking has rebounded this year as buyout firms have deployed more capital, after a spike in financing costs last year triggered a slowdown in dealmaking. Global leveraged buyout volumes jumped 41% to $286 billion during the first half of 2024, according to Dealogic.
Carlyle, which is one of the world’s leading buyout firms with $435 billion of assets under management, has been an active acquirer and seller of assets this year.
In July, Carlyle teamed up with KKR to clinch a deal for a $10-billion student loan book from Discover Financial Services.
Carlyle is currently exploring a sale of StandardAero that could value the U.S. aircraft maintenance services provider at about $10 billion, Reuters has reported.
Perella Weinberg Partners, JPMorgan and Sullivan & Cromwell advised Baxter on the deal. Barclays, Goldman Sachs and Kirkland & Ellis advised Carlyle.
(Reporting by Echo Wang in New York; Editing by Michael Perry)