CD&R and McKesson Agree to Take Option Care Health Private at $32.05 a Share, a 37% Premium

Private equity firm Clayton, Dubilier & Rice (CD&R) and MCK agreed on October 6 to acquire OPCH, the largest independent U.S. home and alternate-site infusion provider, for $32.05 per share in cash. The price values Option Care at an enterprise value of about $5.8 billion including debt and is a 37% premium to its October 5 close, according to the companies' announcement. The deal takes the Nasdaq-listed company private.

It is not a straight McKesson takeover. CD&R will hold a majority interest of about 51%, while McKesson invests about $1.4 billion for a minority stake of about 49%, and Option Care will remain a separate company run by its current management team. The agreement also sets out a framework for McKesson to acquire CD&R's interest later, subject to specified conditions and regulatory approvals. For McKesson, that is a measured entry into infusion services, with its stake accounted for under the equity method rather than consolidated.

The stock first moved on the evening of October 5, rising 22% after hours on a Financial Times report that a takeover valuing the company at more than $5 billion including debt was close; the shares had been down 27% for the year before the report. After the formal announcement they jumped 34% in early Tuesday trading. SentiSense's delayed quote showed OPCH at $31.11 in the afternoon, up 33.1% on volume of 39.2 million shares against a 4.85 million average, leaving the stock about 3% below the offer price.

That remaining gap is the market's price for time and approvals. Closing is expected in the first half of calendar 2027 and requires an Option Care stockholder vote and regulatory clearance; BofA, Barclays, Goldman Sachs, Jefferies and Wells Fargo are providing committed financing. Shareholder-rights firm Halper Sadeh has said it is investigating whether Option Care holders are getting a fair price, a type of announcement that routinely follows cash buyouts and does not by itself signal a challenge to the deal.