El grupo sanitario inglés Vivalto Santé compra Ribera a Centene Corporation

VALENCIA, July 25 (EUROPA PRESS) -

Vivalto Santé, the third-largest French private healthcare group, has acquired the Valencian group Ribera from the American multinational Centene Corporation, which manages nine hospitals in five communities, including the Dénia and Vinalopó departments and the Torrejón Hospital, and provides other health services. medical care.

Centene Corporation has confirmed in a statement that the transaction - which also includes Pro Diagnostics Group (PDG), a subsidiary of Ribera, owner of radiology clinics and other services in Slovakia and the Czech Republic - will be formalized when it obtains the regulatory authorizations from the competent administrative bodies and is expected to close by the end of the year.

In this regard, the Ribera health group -- which also managed the Valencian departments of Alzira and Torrevieja until they passed to public management in 2018 and 2021 and Manises until 2012 -- congratulates itself on "the eight years of successful collaboration with the insurer American leader in public health programs, which has facilitated technological innovation and presence in projects in the United Kingdom and Central Europe".

In this sense, the CEO of the Ribera health group, Elisa Tarazona, pointed out that the years with Centene "have made us better and represent a value that we add to our model". "We are beginning a new stage that is a natural step consistent with our growth strategy, with the circumstances and also with the values ​​that define us, and that we share with Vivalto, of proximity, commitment to people's health, alliance with professionals , knowledge and internationalization", he highlighted.

For her part, the CEO of Centene Corporation, Sarah London, in a statement, points out that this operation is part of the review of its strategy for its international divisions. Thus, she has highlighted that this transaction represents "another important milestone in our plan to create value and continuous review of the portfolio".

In this sense, he highlighted that they have found in Vivalto Santé "a leading partner in health care in Europe, who we believe is better positioned to drive growth and make additional investments in Ribera Salud, Torrejón and PDG, so that they can continue to provide high-quality care to patients around the world."

Vivalto Santé is the third largest private hospital company in France, it operates more than 50 private hospitals and is controlled by Vivalto Partners, a European private equity firm dedicated to the health industry and more than 1,000 doctors are also shareholders of the group.

Centene intends to use most of the net proceeds from the sale to buy back shares and the rest to reduce debt. The transaction is expected to be neutral to Centene's adjusted diluted earnings per share in the 12-month period after closing.