Cencora bolsters specialty business with $4.6 billion deal for Retina Consultants of America

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(Reuters) -Cencora will buy Retina Consultants of America from private-equity firm Webster Equity Partners for $4.6 billion, the drug distributor said on Wednesday, beefing up its presence in the market for specialty medicines.

Higher margins and growing U.S. demand for medicines that treat complex conditions such as rheumatoid arthritis and cancer have encouraged Cencora and peers Cardinal Health and McKesson to double down on the business.

The RCA deal will add nearly 300 retina specialists to Cencora’s portfolio of physician management services. It follows the firm picking up a minority stake in OneOncology last year for around $685 million to access a network of cancer specialists.

RCA’s network consists of specialists focusing on diseases including macular degeneration and diabetic retinopathy.

“The deal makes sense strategically and financially,” Leerink Partners analyst Michael Cherny wrote.

Cencora, formerly known as AmerisourceBergen, would pay potential milestone payments of up to $500 million in aggregate contingent consideration in fiscal years 2027 and 2028.

Southlake, Texas-based RCA, formed by Webster Equity Partners in 2020, provides physician management and financial services to retina specialty practices under its ambit.

Separately, Cencora forecast 2025 profit above Wall Street expectations after beating fourth-quarter estimates on strength in its U.S. business.

The company projected adjusted annual profit per share in the range of $14.80 to $15.10. Analysts on average were expecting $14.71 per share, according to estimates compiled by LSEG.

Cencora in September said it expects 2025 adjusted profit to be at the lower end of its long-term forecast range of 8% to 12% growth.

On an adjusted basis, the company earned $3.34 per share in the quarter ended Sept. 30, beating estimates of $3.22.

(Reporting by Mariam Sunny in Bengaluru; Editing by Shilpi Majumdar and Sriraj Kalluvila)