Emeis exits Latin America; Opalus buys home‑care assets in Brazil

Emeis – a French multinational valued at € 2 billion on the stock market – announced the sale of all its assets in Latin America, raising approximately R$ 800 million from a portfolio that includes transition hospitals, nursing homes and home‑care operations in Brazil, Uruguay, Chile, Colombia and Mexico. In Brazil, most of these assets are being acquired by Opalus – a home‑care company founded in 2021. Opalus paid an enterprise value of R$ 80 million to incorporate five transition hospitals and a home‑care operation with capacity for 1,000 patients. The transaction is transformational for Opalus, which has grown in recent years through acquisitions and already operated hospitals and a home‑care network in Rio de Janeiro and São Paulo. The deal will nearly double its size, bringing revenue close to R$ 500 million. Opalus founder Felipe Ferraz said he sees a huge opportunity to improve the profitability of the acquired assets. He noted that Opalus operates with an EBITDA margin of 10% to 15%, while the purchased assets had negative margins.

“This improvement will come from corporate‑area synergies and from maximizing the use of some regional assets, with greater efficiency in the use of inpatient care and home care within the same markets,” Ferraz told Brazil Journal. The acquisition is Opalus’s fifth deal in the past three years, following the purchases of Premier in São Paulo and Geriatrics in Rio de Janeiro – the latter founded in 1984 and the first home‑care company in Brazil. Ferraz founded Opalus with a mix of equity and third‑party capital, pursuing a consolidation strategy for a highly fragmented sector. Prior to Opalus, he held executive roles at companies including Aegea Saneamento. To date, Opalus has invested R$ 300 million in acquisitions and may launch new capital calls if attractive opportunities arise. “This market has a lot of fragmentation and lacks an obvious consolidator. It is still a relatively new sector here,” Ferraz said. “Brazil has ‘bought’ its aging because the curve has turned, but it has not truly aged like other markets.

We therefore have the chance to grow in a sector with significant potential.” With today’s acquisition, Opalus reaches nearly 3,000 lives and 470 hospital beds, competing for market leadership in Brazil with Home Doctors, which operates only in home care. The portfolio review by Emeis forms part of its strategy to focus on core European markets and reduce leverage. The move follows a reputational crisis that began in 2022 and eroded the French company’s market value. A investigative book alleged mistreatment of seniors and financial fraud at the firm, formerly known as Orpea. Emeis rejected most accusations, hired Alvarez & Marsal for an independent investigation and undertook a broad business restructuring. Since the crisis erupted, Emeis’s share price has fallen more than 90%, and the company now has a market value of about € 2 billion. Emeis worked with BR Partners and Lefosse Advogados. Opalus was advised by Bradesco BBI and Spinelli Advogados.