Chatter about a possible spinout for Siemens Healthcare (NYSE:SI) ramped up yesterday on a report from "2 people familiar with the plans" who said the German conglomerate is actively investigating a possible sale of its hospital database and IT business.
Siemens is evaluating options for the business but no final decision has yet been made, the unnamed sources told Bloomberg, with 1 noting that the IT unit could fetch more than €1 billion, or about $1.36 billion.
In May Siemens unveiled a massive reboot, flattening its businesses, eliminating a layer of management at the sector level and consolidating its 16 divisions into 9. Siemens also said it plans to spin out its 4,000-employee hearing aid business into a public company as part of the move, dubbed "Vision 2020."
The announcement may have signaled Siemens’ spinout intentions regarding Siemens Healthcare, which reported profits of €531 million ($739.6 million), on sales of €3.26 billion during the 3 months ended March 31, for profit growth of 19.3% on a sales decline of -0.7%.
A Siemens spokesman declined to comment, the news service reported.
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