Business Valuation in Healthcare Partnership Breakups: How to Ensure Fairness and Transparency
- Admin
- Jun 18
- 3 min read
Understand why a technical and impartial valuation is essential in partnership breakups within the healthcare industry—and how it can help avoid legal disputes, protect assets, and ensure fair decisions for all parties involved.
When Partnerships End, the Company’s True Value Must Prevail
In situations of shareholder separation—especially when there’s conflict or power imbalance—valuation becomes more than a formality. It becomes a decisive tool. In the healthcare sector, where clinics, laboratories, hospitals, and diagnostic centers have unique characteristics and a high degree of intangibility, a professional valuation is the safest path to ensure fairness and business continuity.
Beyond physical assets, healthcare companies often derive much of their value from patient portfolios, brand reputation, contracts with insurance providers, specialized teams, licenses, and other intangible assets that require expert analysis for accurate assessment.
What Defines a Fair Valuation in Shareholder Separation?
The main goal in this context is to determine the company’s fair economic value through an unbiased, transparent, and methodologically sound process—shielding all parties from subjective interpretations, emotional decisions, or financial losses.
The most suitable methodologies for healthcare businesses include:
Discounted Cash Flow (DCF): Estimates the present value of future profits, using projections tailored to the specific risks and dynamics of the healthcare market.
Market Multiples Approach: Compares the company’s performance indicators with benchmarks from similar businesses.
Adjusted Asset-Based Valuation: Considers both tangible and intangible assets, such as patient databases, proprietary software, service contracts, and accumulated know-how.
Practical example:
A diagnostic center with an annual EBITDA of R$ 1.2 million, equipment worth R$ 800,000, and strong market reputation may be valued between R$ 4 and R$ 5 million, depending on the methodology and growth assumptions. Without a professional valuation, this amount could be underestimated by up to 40%, undermining fairness in the separation.
The Role of Transparency and Technical Documentation
A formal valuation report prepared by a specialized consulting firm lends credibility to the process. It serves as a negotiation basis between partners, can be used in legal proceedings or mediation, and reflects professionalism and good faith.
Key benefits of a professional valuation include:
Avoidance of prolonged and costly litigation
Legal and asset protection
Easier negotiations and preservation of the company’s image
Business continuity with greater stability
By placing numbers at the center of negotiations, emotional tensions are reduced, and space is created for objective, sustainable solutions.
Critical Mistakes to Avoid:
Overlooking intangible assets (brand value, contracts, know-how): Many partners focus only on physical assets or past cash flows, ignoring elements that represent the company’s true market value.
Using generic or inadequate valuation models: Different business types—such as walk-in clinics, private hospitals, laboratories, or franchises—require tailored valuation methods to reflect their specific risks and dynamics.
Negotiating without expert financial support: Poorly executed valuations can result in losses ranging from six to seven figures and jeopardize the business's future—while increasing the risk of future legal disputes.
Valuation: A Tool for Resolution, Not Conflict
When conducted with objectivity, neutrality, and technical rigor, valuation not only determines a fair exit value for the departing partner but also protects the company and remaining shareholders—supporting a smoother and more sustainable transition.
In the healthcare sector—marked by tight margins, high intangible value, and operational complexity—this approach is even more crucial. A fair valuation ensures business stability, data-driven negotiations, and minimal disruption during the transition.
