NEW CANAAN, Conn., Oct. 21, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- In the third quarter of 2026, private equity firms and their sponsored companies (“PE Buyers,” collectively) announced 135 transactions in the healthcare M&A market, or approximately 33% of all the 415 announced healthcare deals, according to data captured in the LevinPro HC platform.
This represents a decrease in M&A volume from the 155 PE transactions announced in the second quarter of 2026, as well as the 190 deals reported in Q3:25.
In Q3:26, disclosed spending totaled nearly $9.14 billion across 10 deals with a PE Buyer. The transaction with the largest purchase price was KKR’s acquisition of Integer Holdings for $5.7 billion. Plano, Texas-based Integer is one of the largest medical device outsource manufacturers in the world, serving the cardiac, neuromodulation, vascular, portable medical, advanced surgical and orthopedics markets. According to its most recent annual filing, Integer reported full-year 2025 revenue or $1.85 billion, and an EBITDA of nearly $292.4 million.
Physician Medical Groups (PMG) drew the highest interest from PE Buyers, with 53 deal announcements, accounting for more than 39% of all PE activity in the healthcare space. In the PMG sector, PE Buyers targeted dental practices in nearly half of the acquisitions, with 26 deal announcements. Dermatology was the second most active PMG specialty in the PE space, with seven transactions, while eye care and cardiology tied in third with three transactions.
PE Buyers also turned their attention toward the Life Sciences R&D market, the second most active sector for PE investments during the quarter, announcing 15 transactions in Q3:26. This represents an increase from the 10 Life Sciences R&D deals announced in both Q2:26 and Q3:25. Contract development and manufacturing organizations were the most active subsector with eight acquisitions, followed by clinical trials with four and contract research organizations with three.
In Q3:26, PE Buyers announced 11 deals each in the Other Services, eHealth and Medical Outpatient Buildings sectors, followed by nine Behavioral Health Care transactions, seven in Home Health & Hospice and six in Medical Devices.
The most active PE-backed buyers were Heartland Dental and Specialized Dental Partners, both in the dental services organization space. Heartland Dental picked up dental practices in Tennessee, Nevada, Virginia and Florida, while Specialized Dental Partners acquired practices in Texas, Georgia and North Carolina.
“PE activity cooled in Q3:26, with volume down from both the prior quarter and last year, yet private equity still drove roughly one-third of all healthcare deals,” said Avery Swett, Associate Editor at Irving Levin Associates. “Buyers appear more willing to sit on their hands than chase marginal assets, which could set up a healthier pipeline once conditions improve.”
All quarterly results are published in The Health Care M&A Report, which is part of LevinPro HC, a research intelligence platform published by Irving Levin Associates, LLC. For information, or to order the reports, call 800-248-1668. Irving Levin Associates is celebrating more than 70 years of delivering exclusive M&A intelligence to its sophisticated audience of seniors housing and healthcare investors. The company was established in 1948 and has offices in New Canaan, Connecticut and North Bethesda, Maryland. The company publishes research reports and newsletters and maintains databases on the healthcare and senior housing M&A markets.
Contact:
Dylan Sammut, Editor
Phone: (203) 846-6800
