Industry/Sector: Health care

Deal Type: Sell-side M&A

FourBridges Team: Chris Rowe, Andy Stockett

Client Profile: North River specializes in orthopedic rehabilitation and sports medicine. Since its first clinic was established in 1991, the privately owned company has grown into an eight-clinic practice with locations across the Chattanooga metropolitan area.

Client Objectives: North River’s management team approached FourBridges with the intention of finding a buyer with the financial and operational resources it needed to continue the company’s growth trajectory. The NRPT team also wanted to get ahead of a growing trend toward consolidation pervading the health care industry. By proactively seeking out a buyer who shared their business philosophy, they could monetize what they had built over the past 20 years, while establishing a solid platform that would be conducive to long-term growth.

The Challenge: Like many business owners, the NRPT team wore a lot of hats: patient care, operational, strategic and financial. Given the demands on their time, they needed help in positioning their company in the most favorable way and finding a partner that shared their interest in patient care and expansion.

The Process: The FourBridges team began by reformatting NRPT’s financial records to make the information more consistent and easily understandable to potential buyers. To gauge the company’s current stance in the market, FourBridges analyzed NRPT’s historical financials and forecasted future performance.

The firm then identified and contacted a targeted list of buyers who might be interested in growing their business via strategic purchases of other companies. Several buyers expressed an interest. FourBridges helped NRPT to evaluate the opportunities presented and identified several parties who had expansion plans in Tennessee and Georgia. Ultimately, ATI proved to be the best strategic match, both geographically and culturally. FourBridges negotiated the terms of the deal.

The Result: After partnering with ATI—a KRG Capital Partners portfolio company—NRPT is now part of a network of more than 300 clinics in 10 states. Before this acquisition, ATI did not have any clinics in the Southeastern U.S. NRPT is now the platform for ATI to establish a beachhead and expand in the Southeast. As a result, the partnership has enabled the North River team to expand their services, provide care for a broader patient base and focus on patient treatment.

Past performance is no guarantee of future results, and there can be no guarantee that these results will be duplicated in the future. Any testimonials presented herein may not be representative of the experience of other clients.