Teladoc Buying At-Home Test Specialist Catapult Health
The leaders of Teladoc Health Inc. have agreed to pay $65 million in cash for a Texas company that markets virtual preventive care services to more than three million covered lives.
Purchase, New York-headquartered Teladoc expects to close on its purchase of Catapult Health by the end of March. Dallas-based Catapult was founded in 2010 and sells at-home or at-work wellness exams and virtual follow-up services for what it says cost about half as much as an office-based checkup. In the 12 months ending Sept. 30, Catapult booked about $30 million in revenues. Among its hundreds of employer customers are well-known names Valvoline, Trane Technologies and Molson Coors.
At the heart of Catapult’s business is a testing kit that guide people through the process of collecting a blood sample, checking their blood pressure and collecting other health information. Where appropriate, that test is followed by a virtual visit with a licensed nurse practitioner and the building of a personalized health action plan.
“Catapult Health’s capabilities will help advance our strategy in meaningful ways—from giving more members access to convenient and impactful wellness and preventative care, to unlocking greater value for our customers,” Teladoc CEO Chuck Divita said in a statement. “Catapult Health brings an experienced team and a strong culture of innovation.”
Catapult’s business will become part of Teladoc’s integrated care segment, which touches 93 million people. Catapult’s services will connect people to Teladoc’s lineup of diabetes, hypertension, pre-diabetes and weight management programs as well as Teladoc’s virtual mental health therapists and primary care providers.
The owners of Catapult could receive another $5 million if the business meets certain performance benchmarks.
Investors gave Teladoc’s deal for Catapult a big stamp of approval: After the company’s shares (Ticker: TDOC) closed at $10.40 the afternoon before Divita and his team announced the purchase, they rose strongly and steadily for three days and closed at $12.94 on Feb. 7. At that price, Teladoc’s market capitalization now stands at more than $2.2 billion—a jump of more than 40 percent from mid-December.
