Travers and Simpson Thacher lead on £1.6bn NHS landlord take-private

Travers Smith and Simpson Thacher are advising on the £1.6 billion takeover of FTSE 250-listed NHS landlord Assura by US private equity giants KKR and Stonepeak.

The successful all-cash bid - announced yesterday (9 April) - was the duo’s fifth and represents a 31.9% premium to Assura's closing price before the first bid became public. The deal is expected to close in the third quarter of the year.

It also leapfrogs a rival £1.5 billion cash-and-share approach from listed competitor Primary Health Properties (PHP) - advised by CMS - which was knocked back earlier this week.

Assura owns a £3.1 billion portfolio of GP surgeries, primary care centres and community hospitals across the UK and Ireland, and has long been a key partner to the NHS.

Bigger picture

The deal is the latest example of overseas bidders taking advantage of the UK’s valuation gap - with infrastructure assets proving especially attractive thanks to their reliable returns.

KKR has been particularly active in the UK, with investments in telecoms company Hyperoptic and Northumbrian Water. Last month, it was also named as a preferred bidder to acquire a £4 billion stake in Thames Water.

In March, private capital rival Blackstone took a minority stake in AGS Airports - the owner of Aberdeen, Glasgow and Southampton airports - in a £235 million deal.

Advising

Travers Smith is advising Assura, with head of transactions Aaron Stocks and M&A partner Ben Lowen leading a cross-practice team spanning corporate, competition, regulatory and real estate.

The firm knows Assura well - it also acted on the REIT’s £185 million equity raise back in 2020 to fund future GP surgeries and healthcare buildings for the NHS.

Simpson Thacher is advising the buyers. The deal marks another big European mandate for the firm from Stonepeak.

It recently advised on Stonepeak’s €1.5 billion acquisition of Italian manufacturer Forgital from Carlyle in December.