Star lenders get impatient | PEP gains exclusivity at SingPost | Marina Radiology taps Monash

Good evening,

Melbourne-based radiologist Joe Youssef has spent 25 years building up Marina Radiology. Now he’s ready for a big payday for himself and two associates.

Street Talk understands Youssef has called in bankers to parade Marina to private equity firms and other prospective buyers, who have been told to think of a price tag as high as $170 million. That’s based on Marina’s $5 million to $10 million EBITDA and the 17-times earnings multiple that Affinity Equity Partners paid for Healius’s Lumus Imaging in September – although recent bolt-on acquisitions in the sector have been done at a far lower multiple.

Monash Advisory, a firm co-founded by former Miles Advisory banker Dean Milner and former Greenhill Caliburn banker Gavin Jacobson, is advising Youssef and his fellow shareholders.

Marina did not respond to Street Talk’s requests for comment on Wednesday afternoon.

Read the full story tomorrow and more on the Street Talk page.

Star Entertainment’s long-suffering lenders are starting to lose patience with the casino group’s turnaround plans. Street Talk understands a handful of Star’s lenders have commenced drip-feeding their holdings to investment banks’ debt trading desks, in hopes of finding buyers for their exposures.

A broad rally lifted the Australian sharemarket higher on Wednesday after Wall Street closed at a record high.

Click here for the latest equity market wrap.