ASX puts value on aged care

The successful ASX listing this week of Regis Healthcare has focused attention on the value of other players in the sector, with Western Australia’s largest being Aegis Aged Care Group.

Regis raised $485 million in new capital prior to its ASX listing, in a deal that valued the business at $1.1 billion.

The new capital was raised at $3.65 per share, and since listing the stock has settled around $4.00 per share, making the business even more valuable.

With 45 aged care facilities and 4,719 operational places (beds), Regis is the largest player in the sector nationally.

Its operations in WA, where it trades as Regis Aged Care, comprise five centres with 598 operational places, ranking it number eight in the BNiQ listing of aged care providers.

Its ASX listing followed the lead set by Melbourne-based Japara Healthcare, which early this year became the country’s first public-listed aged care provider.

Japara has 35 centres and 2,994 operational places, mostly in Victoria.

Like Regis, Japara’s stock is trading comfortably above the offer price of $2.00 – it is currently trading at $2.32, valuing the company at $610 million.

By comparison, Aegis has 27 facilities and 2,244 operational places.

Aegis has given no indication that it plans to pursue an ASX listing but if managing director Michael Cross and his co-director Geoff Taylor do go down that path, they could expect a valuation close to $500 million.

Another privately owned player in the WA market is Hall & Prior Aged Care Group, established by Michael Hall and Graeme Prior in 1993.

Their group has about 1,200 places, mostly in WA but with a growing presence in NSW.

Most of the other big players in the sector, such as Juniper, Bethanie, Baptistcare and Amana Living, are aligned with churches and other not-for-profit groups.