Specialty Hospital M&A | Select Medical Taken Private by WCAS (~9.2x EBITDA / 0.72x Revenue)
- Will Hamilton
- Mar 2
- 2 min read
On March 2, 2026, Select Medical Holdings Corporation (NYSE: SEM) announced a definitive agreement to be taken private by a consortium led by Executive Chairman and Co-Founder Robert A. Ortenzio, Senior Executive Vice President Martin F. Jackson, and private equity firm Welsh, Carson, Anderson & Stowe (WCAS) at $16.50 per share in cash, representing an enterprise value of approximately $3.9 billion.
Select Medical is one of the largest operators of critical illness recovery hospitals (CIRHs), rehabilitation hospitals, and outpatient rehabilitation clinics in the United States. As of December 31, 2025, the company operated 104 CIRHs in 28 states, 38 rehabilitation hospitals in 15 states, and 1,917 outpatient rehabilitation clinics across 39 states and Washington D.C. The acquisition price represents an approximately 18% premium to the company's unaffected share price and a 25% premium to the 90-day volume-weighted average price.
The take-private marks the second time WCAS has taken Select Medical private, the firm first led a buyout in 2005, before the company returned to the public markets via an IPO in 2009. The transaction is expected to close in mid-2026, subject to shareholder and regulatory approvals. Select Medical's current management team is expected to remain in place following the completion of the merger.
Hospital / Specialty Hospital EBITDA Multiples
According to the press release, the purchase price was $16.50/share, representing an enterprise value of $3.9 billion. Revenue and adjusted EBITDA from the earnings release (less income attributable to minority interests).
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Hospital M&A Deal Volume
The number of announced U.S. general acute care and specialty hospital deals dipped slightly in 2025 after a strong rebound in 2023 and 2024 from the declines that occurred in the second half of 2021 and persisted throughout 2022. Volume averaged 21 per quarter in 2025, down from 24 per quarter in 2024, and up from 18 in 2022.
Other Specialty Hospital Deals
Read Scope Research's take on other specialty hospital M&A transactions:
About Scope Research
The Scope Research Healthcare M&A Valuation Database currently has financial details related to 336 general acute care and specialty hospital deals, segmented by type, including over 190 deals with disclosed EBITDA multiples. The data can be purchased individually, while our affordable annual subscriptions provide access to all of our healthcare M&A databases and segments, updated continuously.
Don't hesitate to reach out to Will Hamilton at will@scoperesearch.co with questions about your specific situation.
