Tony Abbott at NYSE
Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott tours the floor at the New York Stock Exchange June 10, 2014. REUTERS/Brendan McDermid (UNITED STATES - Tags: BUSINESS POLITICS)
Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott tours the floor at the New York Stock Exchange June 10, 2014. REUTERS/Brendan McDermid (UNITED STATES - Tags: BUSINESS POLITICS)

The second-largest private hospital operator in Australia, HealthScope, said on Monday that it would seek up to $2.6 billion through an initial public offering. It would be the biggest IPO in the country since 2010.

With shares priced between A$1.76 and A$2.29, that would mean HealthScope and its private equity owners would sell to the public 1.12 billion to 1.28 billion shares. After the IPO, TPG Capital and Carlyle Group would still retain a combined stake between 26 per cent and 40 per cent, giving HealthScope a market value of up to A$3.8 billion.

Market experts see the IPO's success because "Given the aging demographics, health care is a sector that many analysts believe is going from strength to strength," Bloomberg quoted Sam Fimis, a private client adviser at Patersons Securities.

Before deciding on an IPO, TPG and Carlyle explored all options on a potential trade sale, disclosed Robert Cooke, managing director of Healthscope.

The IPO will be listed on the ASX on July 28 after a book build to find out the final price for the initial public offering on July 23 and 24. Cooked said that ahead of the IPO, cornerstone investors had committed to purchase A$1.7 billion worth of shares.

In October 2010, rail operator Aurizon Holdings raised A$4.3 billion through an IPO.

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