Bunzl agrees Chile acquisition, completes Dutch one

(Sharecast News) - Bunzl announced two healthcare-related acquisitions on Wednesday, including a new market entry in Chile and a completed deal in the Netherlands, as it continued to expand its international footprint in specialist distribution. The FTSE 100 company said it had agreed to acquire Hospitalia, one of Chile's largest healthcare distributors.

It said the business supplies a broad range of products, including surgical items, to both public and private hospitals.

The acquisition marked Bunzl's entry into the Chilean healthcare sector, and was expected to complete in the coming months, subject to clearance from competition authorities.

Hospitalia generated revenue of CLP 25bn (£21m) in 2024.

Separately, Bunzl said it had completed the acquisition of Inpakomed, a Dutch provider of sterile product packaging solutions for medical and forensic applications.

The company generated revenue of €3m, or around £2m, in 2024, and was described by Bunzl as highly complementary to its existing operations in the Netherlands.

"Bunzl is a highly cash generative business which allows us to prioritise investment in self-funded value-accretive acquisitions to drive growth, and our pipeline remains active," said chief executive officer Frank van Zanten.

"I am pleased to welcome the team from Hospitalia to Bunzl, with the acquisition marking our expansion into the attractive Chilean healthcare market, as well as the team from Inpakomed, who will expand our product and service offering to customers in the Netherlands."

At 0821 BST, shares in Bunzl were up 0.95% at 2,332p.

Reporting by Josh White for Sharecast.com.