The health-care sector is a government-backed, recession-resilient industry, and this firm is shaping up to be a major player. The company is now the largest private-sector operator of outpatient medical clinics in Canada.

Its aggressive acquisition strategy is targeted at telehealth and other services across Canada and New Zealand.

WELL HEALTH TECHNOLOGIES CORP. (Symbol WELL on Toronto; www.well.company) owns and operates Canada’s largest network of outpatient medical clinics serving primary and

specialized healthcare services and is the provider of a leading multi-national, multi-disciplinary telehealth offering.

In July 2021, the company bought Toronto-based MyHealth Partners Inc. for $206.0 million (plus a future conditional earn-out of up to $60 million). That was the company’s 10th acquisition so far that year.

MyHealth, founded in 2013, has 760 healthcare professionals, including doctors, who provide primary care, specialty care, telehealth services and diagnostic services under Ontario’s provincial health insurance program. MyHealth chief executive Suresh Madan continues to head the business.

About 75% of MyHealth’s medical consultations are done through telehealth technology, some of it provided by Well Health’s group of companies.

The acquisition makes WELL Health the largest private-sector operator of outpatient medical clinics in Canada.

Growth Stocks: Recession-resilient business should keep expanding

The company also bought Intrahealth Systems Ltd. of New Zealand for $19.25 million.

Intrahealth is an Electronic Medical Records provider with a highly customizable platform that supports a wide range of healthcare settings. They include health authorities, hospitals, public health outpatient centres, community health, home care, ambulatory care and diverse health care professionals.

For example, Intrahealth’s solutions for hospitals include patient administration system, bed management, waiting list management, enterprise-wide scheduling, case management, medication management, emergency room operations and ward management, among many other features.

Intrahealth currently supports approximately 15,000 clinicians providing care for millions of patients in Canada, Australia and New Zealand. Over the past 12 months, the company generated approximately $9 million in revenue.

The acquisition looks like a good fit for WELL and lets it launch its international expansion outside of North America.

Moreover, the company previously bought CRH Medical Corporation (symbol CRH on Toronto) for $369.2 million U.S. This Canadian-based firm provides gastroenterologists throughout the U.S. with services and products for the treatment of gastrointestinal diseases. In 2014, CRH also became a full-service gastroenterology anesthesia company. It provides anesthesia services for patients undergoing endoscopic procedures in ambulatory surgical centres. It now serves 72 ambulatory surgical centers in 15 states.

Growth by acquisition adds risk—but WELL Health aims to cut that by buying complementary businesses, like MyHealth and CRH, that it can easily integrate with its current operations.

However, the Canadian health-care sector is a government-backed, recession-resilient industry. What’s more, the rapid expansion of telehealth services spurred by COVID-19 is likely to continue past the pandemic’s eventual end.

In the quarter ended December 31, 2021, WELL’s revenue jumped sharply to $115.7 million from $17.2 million a year earlier. Excluding one-time items, WELL made $5.3 million, or $0.03 a share, up 121.4% from $2.4 million, or $0.02 a share.

Recommendation in Power Growth Investor: WELL Health Technologies Corp. is a buy.