KKR said to be in talks to buy WebMD

Private equity giant KKR is said to be in acquisition talks with medical site WebMD, according to a report from Reuters on Sunday. Shares of WebMD ticked up slightly in after-hours trading after the report.

The price of the potential offer could not be learned, but the public market cap last valued the company at $2.1 billion. Shares are down 10% compared to a year ago, but up 11% since the beginning of the year.

WebMD’s main site is used to look up symptoms and learn about health conditions and news. It also owns Medscape and MedicineNet.

KKR owns Internet Brands Inc., which has a handful of health websites, including DentalPlans.com and FitDay.

Reuters reports that WebMD solicited 100 bids over the past five months, from unnamed companies and other private equity firms. The KKR deal is expected to be announced Monday.

WebMD was founded in 1996 and went public in 2005.

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