Could Unilabs deal hasten the long-awaited sale of Cerba?
Might whichever group that buys Unilabs be tempted to go for another major asset on the market – French reference lab Cerba?
Healthcare Europa is in the process of putting together a comprehensive feature on European labs for next month’s edition – possibly after at least one deal is made – and one of the most striking things we have found talking to people is that perceptions over Cerba greatly vary according to who you speak to.
Some describe it as “a lone, somewhat dangerous asset”. It is limited to specialised testing and very much immersed into France’s constraining political and regulatory environment. But others believe what some see as a weakness is actually a strength and that it has huge potential through its focus on niche, high-growth areas like genomics and veterinary testing. Its recent decision to strengthen its presence in the Middle East has also been noticed and the group is generally described as “a more interesting player” than Unilabs.
So far, no one is rushing to buy Cerba. Private equity owners PAI Partners want an ambitiously high price for the group – perhaps up to 13x EBITDA.
But it is worth noting that whoever buys Unilabs could be tempted to add Cerba to its portfolio. Cerba’s status as a reference lab as well as its ambitions to further specialise and expand internationally make it in many ways complementary to Unilabs. Even if there is no merger, whoever misses on Unilabs could just turn to Cerba. We hear Rothschild is working hard with Chinese private equity for Cerba – and Cinven does lack a reference lab.
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We would welcome your thoughts on this story. Email your views to Ariane Jugieux or call 0207 183 3779.
