The number of publicly announced seniors housing and care acquisitions in the second quarter of 2019 topped 100 transactions for the fifth quarter in a row, with 115 total transactions announced, based on new acquisition data from Irving Levin Associates, in its The Health Care M&A Report.
This represents a 1.7 percent drop from the 117 transactions announced in both the first quarter of 2019 and the second quarter of 2018. Dollar volume rose about 60 percent from $2.7 billion in the first quarter to $4.3 billion in the second quarter of 2019.
Private senior care operating companies dominated the merger and acquisitions market, making 65 percent of the quarter’s acquisitions and driving the record-pace of dealmaking so far in 2019. REITs were the next most-active investors, accounting for 17 percent of the deals, while 16 percent were announced by private equity firms and private real estate investors.
Seniors housing, consisting of independent living, assisted living and memory care properties, captured much of the sector’s focus this quarter, accounting for 60 percent of the announced acquisitions and taking nine of the top 10 deals, by price.
“Despite weaknesses in the seniors housing operating environment, from higher labor costs to lower census, buyers continue to take advantage of abundant and cheap capital to grow their portfolios,” stated Ben Swett, associate editor of The SeniorCare Investor. “Meanwhile, the skilled nursing market is increasingly bifurcated between older, traditional skilled nursing facilities and newer transitional care facilities. Investors are either pouring money into transitional care for its higher margins or making value-add acquisitions in the traditional SNF market.”
All quarterly results are published in The Health Care M&A Report for all 13 sectors of health care, which is part of HealthCareMandA.com. In addition, annual results of the seniors housing and care acquisition markets were published this year in two separate reports: The Seniors Housing Acquisition and Investment Report and The Skilled Nursing Acquisition and Investment Report.
