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One of the largest remaining private veterinary practices anywhere in Ireland, Co Tyrone-based Parklands Veterinary Group is the latest to be acquired by a large corporate entity backed by private investor funds.
It has joined VetPartners, a York-headquartered operation set up in 2015, with 107 veterinary practices and 4,750 employees working in more than 400 sites across Britain.
The acquisition of Parklands is VetPartners’ first move across the Irish Sea, and follows on from the likes of Independent Vetcare (IVC) and CVS Group Ltd, which between them now own multiple veterinary practices across NI.
Welcoming Parklands into the VetPartners business, company CEO Jo Malone suggested that this will not be the only acquisition in Ireland.
“We now have some of the best veterinary businesses across small animal, equine, mixed and farm, and the next 12 months will see further growth in each of our species groups, both in the UK and Europe,” she said.
In its last set of accounts to February 2018, Parklands reported a profit after tax of £1.13m on a turnover of £11.72m.
While a spokesperson for VetPartners would not reveal the price paid for Parklands, it is likely to be a multi-million-pound deal.
Investors
Looking at the accounts of the various VetPartners companies, it eventually leads to the corporate investors financing the various deals. To the end of June 2018, the accounts of VetPartners show that it acquired 34 businesses throughout the year. It made an operating profit of £693,992, but once interest on overdrafts and other charges are accounted for, it lost £13.9m.
The accounts list VetPartners Group Ltd as the parent company of VetPartners Ltd, although the ultimate parent company is VetPartners UK Holdings Ltd.
Its accounts list the acquisitions made in the year to the end of June 2018, with the most significant being the £90m paid for Willows Veterinary Group, a large practice of 300 employees based in the north of England.
The accounts of VetPartners UK Holdings Ltd also show that the company was ultimately controlled at the time by Ares Management LP, a US asset management company.
However, last August reports emerged that London-based private equity company BC Partners had reached an agreement to acquire a majority stake in VetPartners, in a deal worth up to £700m.
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