The Medibank Private Ltd (ASX: MPL) share price finished slightly above its previous close on Friday.
At the close, shares in the private health insurer were up 1% to $3.18. Despite the higher finish, the company's shares are still 7% off the mark from where they started the year at.
It appears that reports shared Thursday night concerning Medibank Private have had a minimal impact on the Medibank share price on Friday. The matter disclosed by The Australian speculated that the Australian health insurer had reached a deal to acquire a day hospital operator.
Let's take a look at the details.
A power play for Medibank shares?
According to reports, Medibank Private could be acquiring Cura Group. Starting in 2008, Cura operates day hospitals and surgeries across Australia, now with 26 under its umbrella — these include:
- Barton Private Hospital
- Somerset Private Hospital
- Sydney Day Surgery Prince Alfred
- Queensland Eye Hospital
- Newscastle Endoscopy Centre
A 70% stake in Cura Group was previously acquired by Fresenius Medical Care in 2017. At the time, this transaction was believed to be worth $400 million. However, at that time the operator only held 19 assets across its portfolio. In total, these assets pulled in ~$127 million of revenue in 2016.
Back to the present for Medibank shares — it is currently unknown for what amount a deal between Cura and Medibank Private would be worth.
Furthermore, some have speculated that the ASX-listed company is looking to align the announcement of the deal with its first-half earnings on 25 February.
If carried out, the deal would further deepen Medibank's vertical integration of healthcare providers. This would add to past deals including:
- 33.4% stake in preventive care clinics operator Myhealth Medical Group in 2021
- 49% stake in East Sydney Private Hospital in 2020; and
- Complete acquisition of in-home care provider Home Support Services in 2018
The goal shared by ASX-listed Medibank is to set itself apart from other health insurance providers.
