KKR to take medical equipment maker Integer Holdings private in $5.7 billion deal

KKR's takeover of Integer comes amid continued private equity interest in healthcare, with buyout firms deploying significant reserves of untapped capital to pursue acquisitions and expand their portfolios.

Some notable private equity buyouts over the past year include American Industrial Partners' $1.27 billion acquisition of Avanos Medical and Blackstone and TPG's deal for women's-health-focused diagnostics firm Hologic for $18.3 billion.

For KKR, which had $796 billion in assets under management at the end of the second quarter, the acquisition will deepen its healthcare exposure and rank among its largest deals in the sector since the firm's $9.9 billion take-private of Envision Healthcare in 2018.

KKR is gaining a company that makes critical components and devices used in heart treatments, pain management therapies and other medical technologies for many of the world's leading medical device manufacturers.

Integer supplies cardiac and pain-management components to major manufacturers.

Integer has faced activist investor pressure in the past. In March, the company reached an agreement with Irenic Capital Management, one of its largest shareholders, to appoint two directors to its board. Irenic owns a stake of more than 3% in Integer, according to LSEG data.

Shares of Plano, Texas-based Integer Holdings rose 2.4% in premarket trading.