Baring Private Equity Asia's impending takeover of Lumenis Ltd. is on track to be the largest of the 38 private equity-backed deals in the healthcare equipment sector in the year to date, with an enterprise value of over $1 billion. The deal, signed in November, will also be among 2019's biggest secondary buyouts, in which both the buyer and the seller are private equity firms, across all sectors.

Lumenis' headquarters at the Yokneam Industrial Park in Israel. Source: Lumenis Ltd.

Lumenis, which was taken private by XIO Group in 2015, makes medical laser devices for use in minimally invasive procedures worldwide. Its biggest market is Asia-Pacific, but it has a strong foothold globally.

XIO, which will exit the business, started the sale process for Lumenis about two years ago. It was reported to be on the verge of selling the Israeli company to U.K. peer CVC Capital Partners Ltd. in November 2018, but that deal fell through.

Healthcare equipment companies have been attractive targets for private equity investors for the past few years. Including the Baring-Lumenis deal, there have been seven private equity acquisitions with gross transaction values of at least $500 million in the sector since 2015.

Platinum Equity LLC's $2.10 billion acquisition of Johnson & Johnson's LifeScan Inc. diabetes care business deal completed in October 2018 was the largest of these, S&P Global Market Intelligence data shows.

CITIC Private Equity Funds Management Co. Ltd.'s purchase of the remaining 80.43% stake in Biosensors International Group Ltd. and Altaris Capital Partners LLC's takeover of Analogic Corp., with gross transaction values of roughly $1.10 billion and $1.09 billion respectively were the second and third largest over the period.

The Biosensors deal was announced in 2015 and was finalized in 2016, while the Analogic transaction was signed and completed in 2018.

The Lumenis transaction is scheduled to close in early 2020, pending regulatory approval.