A German gases, engineering and health care company has moved to purchase one of the largest in-home respiratory care providers in the United States.
Lincare Holdings Inc., a subsidiary of German corporation The Linde Group, has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire Brentwood, Tennessee-based American HomePatient from Highland Capital Management. Lincare, based in Clearwater, Florida, is the leading provider of respiratory therapy services in the United States.
The transaction, which is subject to regulatory review and customary approvals, is anticipated to close in the first quarter of 2016. Parties to the deal declined to disclose the acquisition price to Home Health Care News.
American HomePatient, which has been for sale for about a year, recorded approximately $280 million in revenue last year, employing 2,700 people in over 220 locations throughout 38 states, the Tampa Bay Business Journal reported. The company, which offers home care services and respiratory therapy, has been owned by Highland Capital Management since 2010, and was struggling due to reimbursement pressures in the industry, the Journal reported.
Lincare, meanwhile, operates from about 1,000 locations in 48 U.S. states and Canada, and employs around 11,000 people. The acquisition is expected to increase Lincare’s customer base to more than 1 million patients in the United States. Lincare was acquired by The Linde Group in 2012 for $4.6 billion. The Linde Group is based in Munich, Germany, and describes itself as the largest gases and engineering company in the world, with revenue of about 17 billion euros in 2014.
“The acquisition of American HomePatient will further our strategic growth as we strive to set the standard of excellence for respiratory care delivered in the home,” Lincare CEO Kristen Hoefer said in a press release.
Written by Mary Kate Nelson
Companies featured in this article:
American HomePatient, Highland Capital Management, Lincare Holdings Inc., The Linde Group
