Cencora announced Monday that it has entered a definitive agreement to speed up its buyout of specialty practice network OneOncology, which values the latter at an enterprise valuation of $7.4 billion.
Cencora (formerly AmerisourceBergen) already holds a portion of the company in the wake of a 2023 deal with private equity firm TPG that valued OneOncology at $2.1 billion. The pharmaceutical distribution and services company will now be acquiring TPG’s equity to control a majority stake, with OneOncology’s affiliated practices and management retaining a minority interest.
The deal is expected to close by the end of the first quarter of 2026 (Cencora’s fiscal second quarter), and will run Cencora about $5 billion in total cash—which includes roughly $3.6 billion for the shareholders’ equity and $1.3 billion to retire existing corporate debt. Cencora said it expects to fund the acquisition through new debt financing.
“We are pleased to advance our longstanding partnership with Cencora, who shares our commitment to supporting independent providers,” Jeff Patton, M.D., CEO of OneOncology, said in the announcement. “As cancer care becomes increasingly complex, leveraging the significant expertise of Cencora across the healthcare landscape, while still maintaining our independence, will allow us to enhance the value we provide to practices, improving physicians’ ability to focus on delivering accessible and innovative care to their patients.”
Nashville, Tennessee-based OneOncology operates a network of independent community oncology practices. As of October, when it announced the acquisition of GenesisCare in Florida, OneOncology counted 31 partner practices of approximately 1,800 providers across 365 nationwide care sites.
Cencora said the deal falls in line with its pharmaceutical-centric strategy and growth priorities. Its announcement shined a spotlight on OneOncology as a distribution avenue for its pharmaceuticals, care navigation tools and other operational and clinical support services.
In late 2024, Cencora shelled out $4.6 billion in a similar deal to acquire Retina Consultants of America (RCA), another management services organization that operates a large network of retina specialists. It also earmarked $1 billion last month to expand U.S. drug distribution operations over the next five years, plans that include the opening of a second national distribution center.
“Since our initial investment in OneOncology, the platform has grown substantially as its physician-led approach continues to attract leading practices and physicians, supporting patient access to high-quality care in local communities,” Bob Mauch, president and CEO of Cencora, said in the announcement. “With our recent acquisition of RCA, we look forward to building on both platforms’ research and clinical trial capabilities, advanced technology resources and strong physician leadership to drive unique value to our stakeholders.”
In an investor note, Steven Valiquette, Mizuho Americas managing director and senior equity research analyst for healthcare technology and distribution, said the earlier-than-expected equity interest acquisition marks “a vote of confidence by [Cencora] in the overall oncology market, as management may now see less political/[Medicare] Part B drug pricing risk for 2028.” He also highlighted the deal’s strong valuation of OneOncology—nearly 20 times that of its past 12 months of earnings.
The accelerated acquisition adds to the specialty practice network arms race that has brewed among Cencora’s competitors in the drug distribution and wholesale space. Cardinal Health, in recent years, has inked billion-dollar deals for stakes in GI Alliance, Advanced Diabetes Supply Group, Integrated Oncology Network, Specialty Networks and, recently, Solaris Health. McKesson Corporation also closed big-ticket deals for stakes in Community Oncology Revitalization Enterprise Ventures (Core Ventures) and PRISM Vision.