(Bloomberg) — Johnson & Johnson is preparing a potential sale of the orthopedics unit that it has been planning to separate, with big buyout firms already circling, according to people familiar with the matter.
The business, known as DePuy Synthes, could be valued at more than $20 billion in a sale, the people said, asking not to be identified discussing confidential information.
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J&J is assembling documents and financials for DePuy Synthes before it meets with possible buyers in the coming weeks, the people said. Several large private equity firms are considering teaming up to potentially buy out the unit, they said.
DePuy Synthes, which makes devices used in hip and knee replacements and generated $9.3 billion of sales last year, could also draw interest from rival medical device players, the people said.
Deliberations are at an early stage and there’s no guarantee they’ll result in a sale of the business, according to the people. A representative for J&J declined to comment.
J&J announced plans in October to separate its slower-growing orthopedics business from the rest of the company within 18 to 24 months. At the time, Chief Financial Officer Joseph Wolk said the company hadn’t yet decided how to enact the split but said it was preparing for the possibility of a spinoff, the most time-consuming and resource-intensive approach. He said J&J was “open to ideas that others might have,” including a sale or another transaction if it resulted in greater value.
The pharmaceutical and medical technology firm has said that DePuy Synthes will be the largest orthopedics company in the world if it becomes a standalone company. Bloomberg Intelligence’s Matt Henriksson has estimated the orthopedic unit could be valued at $28 billion including debt.
Private equity firms have become emboldened to make bigger bets following the perceived success of Hologic Inc.’s $18 billion buyout by Blackstone Inc. and TPG Inc. agreed to last year. Acquiring DePuy Synthes would allow sponsors to put a large amount of money to work into what is seen as a stable asset.
–With assistance from Robert Langreth.
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