Varsity's orthopedic biz preps sale, Thom a buys e-​commerce shipping software giant

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The Wire

July 9, 2021

Varsity's Orthopedic Care Partners readies sale, Thoma buys Stamps.com in $6.6b deal, Novo's Availity investment brings value to $1.7b-plus

Happy Friday, readers!

Overwhelmed: One theme I’m hearing on repeat among private equity investors is: deal fatigue. There’s so much activity in the market, a lot of which are quality opportunities, meaning it’s that much more difficult to pick where to spend time. Resources are scarce, and investors only want to dig in and run hard at a company if they know they’ve got a good shot at winning. Especially with prices so high in sectors like healthcare and tech.

Do you agree or disagree? How is this changing how you approach deal sourcing, or rather, how is this impacting sale process dynamics? Write to me at springle@buyoutsinsider.com

Speaking of new opportunities, a rare chance to invest behind a musculoskeletal care company that has achieved scale and professionalization is fast approaching.

Varsity Healthcare Partners, one of private equity’s first movers in the growing orthopedics specialty, is preparing a sale of Orthopedic Care Partners, sources familiar with the firm’s plans told PE Hub. Read it here.

Deals: Just in, Thoma Bravo has a agreed to acquire Stamps.com in a take-private deal valuing the provider of e-commerce shipping software at approximately $6.6 billion... Elsewhere, Novo Holdings' acquisition of Francisco Partners’ minority stake in Availity in a transaction values the health information network between $1.7 billion and $1.8 billion, according to people familiar with the deal terms. Availity, which supports collaboration among health plans and providers, is controlled and governed by some of the country’s largest health plans – including Anthem, Humana, Health Care Service Corporation and GuideWell – meaning decision making is of a different cadence, sources said. Francisco, with the deal, sold what was an approximately...

Read the full wire commentary on PE Hub...

That’s it for me! Have a great weekend, hubsters, and as always, write to me at springle@buyoutsinsider.com with any tips or feedback, or just to say hello!

DEADLINE APPROACHING: Calling all next-gen firms and their investors! We need your participation in our fifth-annual survey of emerging managers and survey of emerging manager investors. As thanks, we'll make sure you get a complimentary copy of the "Emerging Manager Report 2021," based on these surveys (once it's published this fall). All responses are kept confidential. The survey deadline is July 16.

Also of note (may require subscriptions)

Movin' down market: Astorg Partners, which has been on a fundraising tear in recent years, joined the rush of larger GPs raising capital to focus on the mid-market for smaller deals that the flagship fund has outgrown. Astorg collected more than €1 billion ($845 million) for the fund, which is capped at €1.25 billion, according to a person with knowledge of the firm. Read it on Buyouts.