Aetna to buy Coventry Health for $5.7B

Aetna is joining the post-health law insurer purchasing fray and buying Coventry Health for a proposed $5.7 billion to increase its Medicaid business.

The New York Times' Deal Book: Aetna Is Said To Strike Deal For Coventry Health For $5.7 Billion
Aetna is expected to announce on Monday that it will buy Coventry Health Care for about $5.7 billion in cash and stock, in a move by the insurer to push further into government-backed programs like Medicaid, a person briefed on the matter said late on Sunday (de la Merced, 8/20).

The Wall Street Journal: Aetna To Acquire Coventry Health Care
Health-care giant Aetna Inc. said Monday it has struck a deal to buy Coventry Health Care Inc. for $5.7 billion in cash and stock, a move that will make Aetna one of the largest providers of government-financed health care. Aetna, based in Hartford, Conn., is paying $42.08 a share for Coventry, which is a 20.4 percent premium to Coventry's shares as of Friday's close (Terlep and Das, 8/20).

Bloomberg: Aetna Agrees To Buy Coventry For $7.3 Billion Including Debt
Aetna Inc. (AET), the third-biggest U.S. health plan, agreed to buy Coventry Health Care Inc. (CVH) for $7.3 billion including debt. … The Hartford, Connecticut-based health insurer joins competitors WellPoint Inc. (WLP) and Cigna Corp. (CI) in making acquisitions amid President Barack Obama's health care overhaul. WellPoint said last month it would buy Medicaid insurer Amerigroup Corp. for $4.9 billion, and Cigna bought Medicare specialist Healthspring Inc. for $3.8 billion in January (Hallam, 8/20).

Reuters: Insurer Aetna To Buy Coventry Health For $5.6 Billion
Insurer Aetna Inc has signed a deal to buy rival Coventry Health Care Inc for $5.6 billion in cash and stock, the latest in a string of multi-billion-dollar acquisitions in the U.S. healthcare sector. Aetna will pay $27.30 in cash and 0.3885 shares for each Coventry share held, a total value of $42.08 per share, Coventry and Aetna said in a joint statement (Venkatesan and D'Silva, 8/20).