Healthcare and pharma services M&A review: Spring 2026

In April 2026, our team advised Pennamed, a specialist distributor of endoscopic consumables, on its sale to Swedish company Getinge. The process was extremely competitive reflecting Pennamed’s strong margins and clear specialism.

This continues the trend we saw throughout Q1 of investors and trade targeting businesses with a very strong niche. Regardless of size, assets with specialisms were able to command high multiples.

Established consolidators remained active throughout the quarter. In March, Swedish life science company AddLife continued its buy-and-build strategy with the acquisition of UK device distributor BioSpectrum.

We also saw the growth of new platforms. For example, in February, Belgium-based investment holding company Groupe Bruxelles Lambert (GBL) signed an agreement to buy a controlling stake in Rayner Surgical Group.

The press release neatly summed up healthcare’s pull: “The healthcare sector, supported by favorable [sic] long-term demographic trends and growth perspectives, presents attractive investment opportunities. In addition, fragmentation across geographies and activities lends itself to ample value-creative M&A.”

In medtech, investors backed companies that promise to help the NHS transform from analogue to digital, one of the three shifts outlined in the Government’s 10 Year Health Plan for England.

London-based healthcare focused private equity firm G Square made two acquisitions through its health tech company Mayden. These were patient engagement platform Wellola and NHS AI-Scribe firm CLAI.

Rockpool Investments acquired CareScribe, a dictation and captioning software company, and healthtech startup Emerald secured pre-seed funding for its GP-led preventative care model.

Pharma and life science deal volumes bounced back in Q1 2026 after a marked dip in the previous quarter.

Again, a notable theme was the willingness of buyers to pursue smaller, highly specialised businesses for strategic reasons, such as depth of clinical expertise or specificity of IP. In February, for example, Axol Bioscience acquired the ophthalmology business of Newcells Biotech, which we advised.

Ongoing biotech pressures and tariff uncertainty has been pushing investors towards services and consultancies rather than earlier-stage developments, while the growing use of AI across the sector is increasingly influencing valuations. Q1 deals in this space include CBPE Capital investment in Access Infinity, a specialist in pharmaceutical market access and pricing solutions and BGF taking a £15 million stake in Seda Pharma Development Services. Bridgepoint backed Prescient also acquired Dolon, a market access specialist, demonstrating continued activity in access and commercialisation.

International buyers continued to target UK assets demonstrating a willingness to invest in strategic growth areas. In February, US-based Red Nucleus Solutions acquired Bridge Medical Consulting, a UK health economics consultancy that uses AI to enhance its data capabilities.

Private equity continues to show interest in listed healthcare companies, demonstrated by EQT’s approach for Oxford Biomedica.

In March, we supported Herts & Essex Fertility Centre with its sale to FutureLife Group, a PE-backed pan-European acquirer backed by Hartenberg Holding and CVC Capital Partners. Founded 40 years ago by a husband and wife clinical team, the business reflects the enduring attractiveness of high-quality, clinician-led services.

Consumer-facing healthcare continued to attract investment, due to non-discretionary end market spending and the opportunity to bring sharper marketing to a sector that has historically underinvested reaching end users. We believe there is an opportunity for consumer-focused investors to enter this market, as demonstrated by Imbiba’s acquisition of Pindrop Hearing, a private clinical audiology business, aligned with their strong focus on consumer and lifestyle investments. 

Opportunities remain in less mature areas, such as audiology, cardiology and women’s health, where fragmentation still offers scope for platform-building.

March was a busy month in this area. Including BGF-backed OCL Vision acquired Eastbourne Vision, and Optima Health agreed to acquire PAM Healthcare, strengthening its position in occupational health.

Public markets conversations were preoccupied with the non-emergence of a takeover for Spire Healthcare, where interest from Bridgepoint and Triton fell away, prompting an 18% share price drop in March, although discussions with other parties continue, so we expect to see more news about this later in the year.

Our team provided financial due diligence for Sovereign Capital’s February acquisition of Apollo Home Healthcare, a complex care provider supporting adults and children nationally.

Quarter-on-quarter deal volumes fell from 40 in Q4 2025 to 19 in Q1 2026, reflecting the aftershock of Welltower's landmark acquisition of more than 600 UK care homes last year. The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) opened a formal merger inquiry in January 2026 and on 7 May 2026, the CMA concluded its Phase One review and found that each of the four completed acquisitions – of care homes managed by Barchester Healthcare, HC-One, Aria Care (including Asprey) and Danforth Care – may give rise to a substantial lessening of competition in local markets. Absent acceptable undertakings, all four deals are headed for an in-depth Phase Two investigation.

The investigation has created a degree of regulatory chill, with some buyers pausing to see how much consolidation the CMA will tolerate. At the same time, the sheer volume of homes absorbed by Welltower has reduced the number of assets available to trade. However, if the CMA requires divestments, a number of homes could come to market, creating opportunities for smaller and mid-market acquirers.

Of the deals that happened, complex dementia care was an active subsector with Fortava Healthcare (backed by Downing private equity) acquiring three homes in Nottingham and further deal activity expected in Q2 2026, including the recently announced disposal of the Towerview Care portfolio of homes. International capital remains attracted by the combination of property-backed assets and structural demand from an ageing population.