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| Labco CEO Philippe Charrier |
French medical diagnostics outfit Labco is inching closer to an IPO, filing plans to go public during the first half of 2015 to generate growth and expand its footprint in the field.
The Paris-based company will list its shares on the Euronext exchange in Paris, and hopes to raise €320 million ($350 million) in the offering, it said in a regulatory filing. Proceeds from an IPO will go toward repaying outstanding debt, allowing for "increased strategic and financial flexibility" while spurring growth in the long-term, the company said in a statement.
"With this planned IPO, our aim is to continue the Group's growth dynamic and the roll-out of our medical project based on technological innovation and operational excellence," Philippe Charrier, Labco's CEO, said in a statement. "At the heart of our corporate vision, we are committed to offering our medical partners and patients a service combining reliability, speed and quality diagnostics. The forthcoming listing will allow us to continue creating long-term value for our shareholders, by strengthening our position and playing a driving role in transforming the healthcare sector."
And Labco seems to be well-positioned to meet its goals: The company boasts 6,000 employees and medical personnel in Europe, and offers more than 5,000 routine and specialty analyses covering areas including molecular and nutritional biology. Labco also has a network of more than 160 labs and about 1,000 collection centers, and offers outsourcing and subcontracting services to hospitals--a potentially fruitful segment as cost and productivity concerns weigh on providers.
A strong infrastructure, combined with promising sales numbers, could help the company deliver on its promises for growth. In 2014, Labco raked in €650 million in sales and an EBITDA of close to €131 million, a margin of approximately 20.2%. The market for medical diagnostics is still changing, as the industry responds to pricing pressure, changing quality standards and increasing complexity of tests. But Labco is "actively involved" in the consolidation and plans to use its diagnostic know-how to cash in on the market, the company said in a statement.
Next up, Labco plans to develop a wider range of new tests and services aimed at the European market and make acquisitions "focused on the creation of shareholder value," it said in a statement. The company is also looking to partner with public organizations that want to outsource their medical diagnostic services.
Labco is not the only diagnostics company with IPO ambitions. In March, RainDance Technologies filed plans for a $60 million IPO to fuel expansion for its sequencing products and digital droplet technology platform. Earlier this week, microbial genetics analysis outfit OpGen set the terms for its previously announced public offering, planning to raise up to $35 million to support development of its gene tests for drug-resistant bacteria.
- read Labco's statement (PDF)
- here's Labco's regulatory filing (PDF)
- get the New York Times' story (sub. req.)