Bloomberg News reported that Walgreens Boots Alliance Inc is considering buying healthcare IT firm Evolent Health Inc, citing people familiar with the situation. Evolent, based in Arlington, Virginia, saw its stock rise as much as 18 percent after the announcement, before reducing some of its gains to trade up about 9%.
- Partnership: Evolent Health helps healthcare providers and health plans form partnerships in order to help them move to a value-based care model. It also collaborates with insurance companies to save expenses and provides physicians with assistance in order to provide the best possible care.
- Access: The acquisition could help Walgreens expand its portfolio by providing access to payer connections and a technology-based platform. Evolent declined to comment, while Walgreens did not respond to a request for comment from Reuters.
- Investments: Walgreens previously stated that it was concentrating on strategic investments to expand its core pharmacy business. It invested $970 million last week to buy a majority share in Shields Health Solutions, a specialized pharmaceutical company.
- Agreement: Evolent had a market value of $2.36 billion, based on a recent close. The company reached an agreement with activist investor Engaged Capital last year to appoint a new director and create a new board committee.
- Market value: Evolent Health was founded in 2011 and went public just four years later, but it has been under pressure from activist investor Engaged Capital to sell the firm. The company’s shares have risen 80% this year, bringing its market value to $2.53 billion.
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