Biomet files for IPO to help pay off buyout debt (MarketWatch)
Orthopedic device manufacturer Biomet Inc. filed plans Friday for an initial public offering of up to $100 million, partially to pay off debts from its 2007 buyout.
The Wall Street Journal reported last month that the company, which makes dental implants and artificial hips and knees, was in discussion with banks about a return to public ownership.
Based in Warsaw, Ind., Biomet was acquired in 2007 for about $11.3 billion by Blackstone Group, KKR & Co., TPG and Goldman Sachs Group Inc.'s buyout arm. Each of those firms pitched in about $1.3 billion in cash, with the remainder, about $6.2 billion, covered with new debt, according to securities filings.
Biomet still carries much of that buyout debt on its balance sheet. The company said in January that its debt was about $5.9 billion as of Nov. 30, the end of its fiscal second quarter, down from about $6.2 billion immediately after the buyout.
In a Securities and Exchange Commission filing Friday, the company said it would use the proceeds of the IPO to reduce its outstanding debt and for general corporate purposes.
After this IPO, Biomet is the latest company ...
