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GE HealthCare Technologies is in talks over a $1bn deal to buy a private equity-backed company specialising in radioactive chemicals used in cancer scans, as it hunts for growth three years after its split from the corporate giant.
A takeover of radiopharmaceutical developer Sofie Biosciences could be announced as soon as next week provided there are no last-minute snags, according to people familiar with the matter. GE HealthCare was discussing paying roughly $1bn for Sofie, the people added.
The potential deal would mark GE HealthCare’s second sizeable acquisition since the medical imaging specialist broke away from US conglomerate General Electric as part of a three-way split that was among the most complex break-ups in corporate history.
GE HealthCare is one of the biggest manufacturers of high-end medical imaging equipment, such as MRI, CT and PET scanners, which are used to check for injuries, cancers and neurological diseases.
However, GE HealthCare has proved to be the least successful of the three publicly traded companies that trace their heritage back to GE. The vast break-up started with the spin-off of GE HealthCare in January 2023 followed by power company GE Vernova in April 2024.
Shares in GE HealthCare are up just 12 per cent compared with its opening trading day, giving it a market value of $28.8bn, whereas GE Vernova’s market capitalisation has increased sevenfold to $254bn. Shares in GE Aerospace have more than doubled since the break-up was completed.
This week, GE Aerospace struck its biggest deal to date, agreeing to buy Warburg Pincus-backed Consolidated Precision Products for $11.75bn, which makes parts that cool engines, a crucial part of GE’s supply chain.
An acquisition of Sofie would help bolster GE HealthCare’s pharmaceutical diagnostics division, which supplies the agents and chemicals used in scans. Sofie is developing radioisotopes for use in PET scans to detect certain types of gastro-oesophageal and pancreatic cancers.
Sofie is still largely owned by its founders and management, as well as private equity group Trilantic, the former merchant banking division of collapsed Lehman Brothers, which bought a 25.8 per cent stake in 2024 valuing the whole business at up to $550mn.
The takeover would come on the heels of GE HealthCare announcing a “comprehensive review of strategic options” for its patient care solutions division in July as it seeks to boost performance by refocusing its business on core operations.
Simultaneously, billionaire investor Nelson Peltz’s Trian Fund Management, which played an instrumental role in the GE break-up, has boosted its stake in GE HealthCare and now owns nearly $200mn worth of stock, according to a regulatory filing from July.
GE HealthCare declined to comment. Sofie Biosciences and Trilantic did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
