Medical sterilization firm Sotera Health looks to raise $1.07 billion in IPO

Medical sterilization firm Sotera Health Co, backed by private equity firms Warburg Pincus and GTCR, said on Thursday it was looking to raise up to $1.07 billion in its initial public offering.

The company said it planned to sell 46.6 million shares priced between $20 and $23 apiece, seeking a valuation of $6.38 billion at the top end of the range.

For the nine months ended Sept. 30, the company recorded $601.3 million in revenue, compared with $584.8 million a year earlier. Net income attributable to the company, however, fell about 28% to $5.1 million.

Reuters reported in October that Warburg Pincus and GTCR were readying an IPO of Sotera which could value the medical sterilization firm at more than $5 billion.

Warburg, whose president is former Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner, and GTCR bought their stakes in Broadview Heights, Ohio-based Sotera in 2015 and 2011, respectively.

The IPO comes after Sotera’s private equity owners sought to sell the company in 2018, Reuters reported at the time. However, the sale plans were abandoned after Sotera faced lawsuits by residents living near one of its Illinois factories alleging emissions from the plant caused cancer and other health problems.

J.P. Morgan, Credit Suisse, Goldman Sachs, Jefferies, Barclays, Citigroup and RBC Capital Markets are the lead underwriters for the offering.

Source: Reuters