ConvaTec's owners have appointed Morgan Stanley and Goldman Sachs to explore a sale of the medical device maker which could be worth up to $10 billion, sources familiar with the matter said. Private equity firms Avista Capital Partners and Nordic Capital are preparing the groundwork for a possible sale or initial public offering (IPO) in 2015 for the Luxembourg-based company, said the sources who spoke on condition of anonymity because the process is private.Mergers and acquisitions in the healthcare space have hit a record pace so far this year, in part driven by U.S. companies seeking to redomicile in countries that have a lower corporate tax rate, in a practice known as inversion.Kimberley-Clark and 3M are considered likely bidders for ConvaTec, said the sources, adding that the U.S. firms' interest was not motivated by tax inversion issues.ConvaTec, Nordic Capital, 3M, Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley declined to comment. Kimberley Clark and Avista Capital did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
Morgan Stanley is a global financial services company that, through its subsidiaries and affiliates, provides its products and services to a range of clients and customers, including corporations, governments, financial institutions and individuals. Shares of MS traded higher by 0.49% or $0.16/share to $33.01. In the past year, the shares have traded as low as $28.13 and as high as $36.44. On average, 9395120 shares of MS exchange hands on a given day and today's volume is recorded at 12915635.
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