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EGI looks to strengthen Ardent’s position with IPO; Vistria’s Latif talks about getting into private equity

Good morning, Hubsters. Michael Schoeck here, jumping into the hot seat for editor in chief MK Flynn, who’s on vacation this week.

Flexing PE Hub’s prowess in healthcare reporting, we have a pair of original reports this morning for you from healthcare reporter John R Fischer and some unfortunate news to share with you thereafter:

The first is a twist on the “Inside the exit” series of stories, with John looking at Equity Group Investments’ recently filed plan to launch an IPO of Ardent Health Partners.

The second is a Dealmakers to Watch profile on Natasha Latif, a Pakistani woman who was recently promoted to partner at Vistria Group, a middle market private equity firm.

The third brief is a lookback on the illustrious life of Harvey Sigelbaum, a senior advisor for the Riverside Company, a pivotal force in the healthcare insurance industry, who passed away a few days ago.

For the last week of August, deal news is decidedly slow. In energy, Riverstone Holdings is exiting energy and commodities trading firm Trailstone to Englehart Commodities Trading,a commodities trader focused on Europe and Asia.

Closing out today we have a head’s up that tomorrow National Football League (NFL) owners will be holding a public meeting which is expected provide clarity on private equity ownership rules in the professional football organization.

First up today let’s look at two original healthcare stories by John R Fischer.

Hospital IPO

Equity Group Investments (EGI) chose an unusual liquidity option for a hospital operator when it launched an IPO for Ardent Health Partners, the fourth largest private for-profit healthcare provider in the US. But it was one that should help Ardent grow further, EGI president Mark Sotir told PE Hub in an interview.

Upgrade to the premium version of the Wire to read the full story,

Impactful healthcare investing

Natasha Latif realized that private equity was the career for her while still an economics major at the University of Chicago. Now a healthcare partner for the Vistria Group, she saw an impetus to solve real-world problems with analytics, and saw she could do so right out of school as an associate at Brookstone Partners.

For the Chicago-based Vistria Group, healthcare represents up to 60 percent of its total investments. It focuses on healthcare services as well as pharma and life sciences, which are Latif’s primary focus areas, she told PE Hub as part of its Dealmakers to Watch series.

Upgrade to the premium version of the Wire to access the full story.

PE Hub is featuring Dealmakers to Watch profiles on private equity professionals as they pivot to new challenges, such as moving to a new firm, launching a new firm, being promoted to partner, launching an investment strategy, closing a significant deal or some other new endeavor.

For more in the series, see these latest clips:

• How a chance meeting led Jeff Aiello into a career in private equity

• 'Transformational time in technology' led Chip Schorr to launch Niobrara

• Renovus Capital’s new principal Gary Tang eyes opportunities in healthcare services

Remembering Harvey

Over the weekend PE Hub learned of the unfortunate news of Harvey Sigelbaum’s passing, at 87. Harvey led an illustrious career in the corporate and finance world, where he most recently served as a senior adviser for the Riverside Company in New York since 2007.

Upgrade to the premium version of the Wire for more background on Sigelbaum’s illustrious life and innovating the healthcare private equity market.

Clean energy trading

This morning Riverstone Holdings announced the exit of Trailstone, an Austin, Texas-based energy and technology trading company focusing on renewable energy, to Engelhart Commodities Trading Partners. Additional terms were not disclosed.

Upgrade to the premium version of the Wire for more details.

Ready for some football?

On Tuesday, the NFL owners are meeting, and PE firms are hoping to get an update on ownership rule changes.

Upgrade to the premium version of the Wire to access more on private equity interest in NFL football franchises.

That’s a wrap for me today. Stay tuned for Craig McGlashan on the Tuesday Wire tomorrow and have a great week.

Cheers,

Michael

Read the full Wire commentary on PE Hub ...

Also of note (may require subscriptions)

"Several private equity firms [such as Carlyle, Blackstone, Permira, CVC Capital Partners and Bridgepoint] are considering offers for a stake in Grant Thornton’s UK business, in a competitive bidding process aimed at securing a valuation of up to £1.5bn for the mid-tier accountant." (Financial Times)

"Most of the world’s biggest private equity firms ... have put the brakes on deals in China this year as geopolitical tensions rise and Beijing exerts tighter control over business." (Financial Times)

"KKR & Co. is considering options including bringing in fresh backers for Sylvan Inc., the world’s largest producer and distributor of mushroom spawn, according to people familiar with the matter." (Bloomberg)

"A select group of private equity-backed physician practices benefited from the federal process for resolving billing disputes for out-of-network care, collecting payouts well above what insurers would have paid in-network, an analysis of 2023 data shows." (Axios)

"China's Didi Global is in advanced talks to sell its smart driving and cockpit assets to state-backed digital mapping firm NavInfo's unit, as the ride-hailer focuses on its core business after a bruising regulatory crackdown, three sources said." (Reuters)

They said it

“With healthcare, the biggest thing is being curious. Our healthcare system is very complex, and there are a lot of different nuances. I think someone who enjoys learning that complexity and thinking about how certain business models can address the issues in the healthcare system should ask a lot of questions and try to understand why things work the way they do and if there could be a better approach.”

— Natasha Latif, healthcare partner at the Vistria Group, on her ambitions getting into private equity.