Bridgepoint acquires Oasis Healthcare from Duke Street

The price corresponds to an entry multiple of just over 9x, according to the target's EBITDAE of £17.8m for the 2011/2012 financial year.

The sale was initiated by Duke Street, which hired DV Advisory to find a buyer. The business is said to have attracted widespread interest from private equity houses, which are believed to have included LDC, Capvest and Omers Private Equity.

Duke Street reinvested part of the sale's proceeds to retain a minority stake in Oasis. The GPs expect further rapid expansion for the business, Bridgepoint said in a statement.

Debt
Total banking facilities of £146.5m were arranged by Bank of Ireland, Barclays, GE Capital, HSBC, ING and Société Générale. Bridgepoint committed a further £60m in capex facilities for the business's expansion. 

Previous funding
Duke Street took Oasis private at the end of 2007, following a bidding war with ADP Healthcare. The GP paid 12x EBITDA for the asset according to unquote" data.

The GP's final bid was 94p per share, reflecting an enterprise value of £125.5m for the business. The share price represented a 100% premium on the closing price prior to the commencement of the offer period. The deal was supported by a £70.4m debt package from Barclays and comprised £55m of senior debt and a £15.4m mezzanine tranche.

Duke Street bought Foresight Venture Partners' 10% stake in Oasis for £8m as part of the take-private. Foresight realised returns of 5.1x capital invested on behalf of its VCT 3 and 4 vehicles. Duke Street's acquisition also enabled Singer & Friedlander, Chelverton and Beringea (via its ProVen VCT) to exit.

In 2010, Oasis received a further £30m financing from Duke Street (£10m) and Partners Group (£20m) alongside £20m of growth capital, which was extracted from the company's operating cashflow. Oasis used the capital to fund expansion including upgrading its existing estate, acquiring established dental practices and building new sites.

The business had 134 dental practices in England and Wales at the time of the delisting. By 2013, it had more than 200 practices across England, Wales and Northern Ireland.

Company
Oasis is a private dental care provider active across the UK. The business was founded in 1996 and is headquartered in Norwich. It serves both the NHS and private patients.

In the financial year 2011/12, Oasis had a turnover of £148.1m (up from £135.6m in the year before and £96m in 2007) and an EBITDAE of £17.8m, up from £15.9m in the year prior and £11m in 2007. The company invested £7.7m in new builds, acquisitions and existing facilities in the period.

People
Jamie Wyatt is a partner at Bridgepoint. Peter Taylor is Duke Street's managing partner.

Advisers
Equity – Rothschild (Corporate finance); KPMG (Financial due diligence, tax, pensions due diligence, IT due diligence); PwC (Commercial due diligence); Linklaters (Legal); Marsh (Insurance due diligence).
Vendor – DC Advisory (Corporate finance); PwC (Financial due diligence); LEK Consulting (Commercial due diligence); SJ Berwin (Legal).
Debt – Clifford Chance (Legal).
Management – Jamieson (Financial due diligence); Burges Salmon (Legal). 

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• Topics
• Buyouts
• Exits
• UK / Ireland
• Healthcare
• Bridgepoint
• United Kingdom
• Duke Street Capital
• Secondary buyout