The Practice Buyer's Corner - Random Musings from the Buy-Side
The Practice Buyer's Corner - Random Musings from the Buy-Side
The purpose of this blog is to share current, real world, experiences on the topics of practice valuation, practice transition, retirement planning, and building equity value - over time - in your dental practice.
Blog By:
seanepp
seanepp

Displaying 1-25 of 40
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Deal Structuring: Just what is “market” these days?
Posted 1 day ago by seanepp in The Practice Buyer's Corner - Random Musings from the Buy-Side   |  Comments: 0  |   Views: 114
Deal Structuring: Just what is “market” these days?
Ok, we’ve covered a lot in recent weeks - debt, equity, TopCo/JV, partnership considerations, etc.   So what about deal structuring?   Deal structuring lays out the components of a deal and how the parties intend to fund or finance them.  The most bandied about term is “cash-at-close” (“CAC”)  -...  Read More
Categories: Ethics, Jurisprudence and Malpractice, Financial Planning and Investments, Health, Wellness and Ergonomics, Practice Management, HR and Accounting, Practice Transitions
New Partner Considerations
Posted 2 days ago by seanepp in The Practice Buyer's Corner - Random Musings from the Buy-Side   |  Comments: 0  |   Views: 135
New Partner Considerations
New Partner Considerations The purpose of this article is to provide an overview of the puts and takes of bringing a new partner into your practice or group. Valuation Considerations There has been a marked increase in independent dentists using groups for “stalking horse” valuations to boost...  Read More
Categories: Ethics, Jurisprudence and Malpractice, Financial Planning and Investments, Health, Wellness and Ergonomics, Practice Management, HR and Accounting, Practice Transitions
A Valuation Without Context Is Worthless
Posted 2 days ago by seanepp in The Practice Buyer's Corner - Random Musings from the Buy-Side   |  Comments: 0  |   Views: 102
A Valuation Without Context Is Worthless
When it comes to business valuation, everyone loves to rush to “the multiple” discussion - i.e. what multiple of revenue or unlevered free cash flow (EBITDA) is used to arrive at the Total Enterprise Value (“TEV”). While this approach can be directionally accurate and helpful for “swagging”...  Read More
Categories: Ethics, Jurisprudence and Malpractice, Financial Planning and Investments, Health, Wellness and Ergonomics, Practice Management, HR and Accounting, Practice Transitions
“What’s Your Equity Story?”
Posted 7 days ago by seanepp in The Practice Buyer's Corner - Random Musings from the Buy-Side   |  Comments: 0  |   Views: 193
“What’s Your Equity Story?”
The contemporary forms of group practices (DSO, DPO, DMO, ABC, DGO, LOL) are approaching their sixth decade of operations.  As the labels and models proliferate, an increasingly common conversation is: “So, what’s your equity story?” Fantastic question. I encourage anyone curious about...  Read More
Categories: Ethics, Jurisprudence and Malpractice, Financial Planning and Investments, Health, Wellness and Ergonomics, Practice Management, HR and Accounting, Practice Transitions
Just How "Adjusted" Is Your EBITDA?
Posted 2/9/2026 by seanepp in The Practice Buyer's Corner - Random Musings from the Buy-Side   |  Comments: 0  |   Views: 251
Just How "Adjusted" Is Your EBITDA?
Just How Adjusted Is Your EBITDA? Add-back this, adjust that.   “Pro forma” has become a verb and it usually has little to do with reality.  It can, however, provide the motivation and lubricant to get a deal done.  Always within reason. When it comes to adjusting financial statements, most...  Read More
Categories: Ethics, Jurisprudence and Malpractice, Financial Planning and Investments, Marketing, Practice Management, HR and Accounting, Practice Transitions
Our Ongoing Staffing Conundrums
Posted 2/5/2026 by seanepp in The Practice Buyer's Corner - Random Musings from the Buy-Side   |  Comments: 0  |   Views: 201
Our Ongoing Staffing Conundrums
Optimizing the staffing model for any practice always seems to be a work-in-progress.   Dentistry is certainly not getting any easier, and top line pressures only exacerbate the need to identify pockets of opportunity in practice overhead. You can only wring out so many efficiencies in supply...  Read More
Categories: Ethics, Jurisprudence and Malpractice, Financial Planning and Investments, Health, Wellness and Ergonomics, Practice Management, HR and Accounting, Practice Transitions
Demystifying Group Structures
Posted 12/2/2025 by seanepp in The Practice Buyer's Corner - Random Musings from the Buy-Side   |  Comments: 0  |   Views: 353
Demystifying Group Structures
Demystifying Group Practice Structures The modern dental service organization ("DSO") has been around since the 1970’s.  Growth began increasing in the late 1990’s with a handful of dental IPOs.  The DSO space exploded in the early 2000’s with the growing involvement of private equity in the sector...  Read More
Dental Debt Weighing Heavy?
Posted 11/25/2025 by seanepp in The Practice Buyer's Corner - Random Musings from the Buy-Side   |  Comments: 0  |   Views: 368
Dental Debt Weighing Heavy?
Are you an individual or group practice owner? A direct lender to dental practices and dental groups (DSOs)? An attorney or CPA advising dental clients? A risk management or workout executive? The dental economy is facing significant challenges in maintaining historical results and achieving...  Read More
Valuation Blind Spot: Price Per Patient
Posted 11/20/2025 by seanepp in The Practice Buyer's Corner - Random Musings from the Buy-Side   |  Comments: 2  |   Views: 336
Valuation Blind Spot: Price Per Patient
Most of us are familiar with practice valuations being expressed by a variety of metrics - e.g. % of revenues, multiple of Seller Discretionary Earnings (SDE), or multiple of EBITDA or "Cash Flow".     These are all commonly accepted, relevant metrics, especially when comparing valuations across...  Read More
Categories: Financial Planning and Investments, Health, Wellness and Ergonomics, Marketing, Practice Management, HR and Accounting, Practice Transitions
The Duality of Overhead
Posted 11/12/2025 by seanepp in The Practice Buyer's Corner - Random Musings from the Buy-Side   |  Comments: 0  |   Views: 369
The Duality of Overhead
The topic of "Overhead" can be a tricky one.   Certain big decisions - e.g. real estate - can have long-lasting financial impacts as can practice style and preferred staffing model.   Mature practices - particularly those inside of ~5 years until retirement - tend to drift into the glidepath of...  Read More
Categories: Financial Planning and Investments, Marketing, Office Design, Practice Management, HR and Accounting, Practice Transitions
Uncertainty Causing Unease in 4Q25?
Posted 11/12/2025 by seanepp in The Practice Buyer's Corner - Random Musings from the Buy-Side   |  Comments: 0  |   Views: 258
Uncertainty Causing Unease in 4Q25?
While macro factors remain outside of our control, the good news is that practice valuations remain near their zenith and still well ahead of historical norms. Solid practices are still trading at very healthy valuations.   That being said, it has become increasingly important for those...  Read More
Demystifying the "Work Back Period"
Posted 11/7/2025 by seanepp in The Practice Buyer's Corner - Random Musings from the Buy-Side   |  Comments: 0  |   Views: 376
Demystifying the "Work Back Period"
Overview – The “Work Back” Period The most common objection to pursuing a transition to or affiliation with a dental group – vs. selling to another private dentist – is the amount of time the seller is asked to commit to continue leading the practice post-closing – aka the “Work Back” period. DSOs...  Read More
Payroll
Posted 9/3/2025 by seanepp in The Practice Buyer's Corner - Random Musings from the Buy-Side   |  Comments: 3  |   Views: 341
While getting the historical payroll figures accurate remains important from a due diligence perspective, understanding the exact payroll you’ll be stepping into as the new owner on Day 1 must be the priority. Why?  Because historical payroll data is just that, history.  A lot can happen in any...  Read More
Categories: Financial Planning and Investments, Health, Wellness and Ergonomics, Marketing, Practice Management, HR and Accounting, Practice Transitions
Catching The Falling Knife
Posted 8/25/2025 by seanepp in The Practice Buyer's Corner - Random Musings from the Buy-Side   |  Comments: 0  |   Views: 323
Catching The Falling Knife
DISCLAIMER:  I’m not an attorney, I’ve spent millions on legal fees, and I stayed at a Holiday Inn Express last night.  This is not legal advice! We are seeing a pronounced uptick in financially distressed private practices of all sizes and varieties across the country. There is no singular...  Read More
Categories: Ethics, Jurisprudence and Malpractice, Financial Planning and Investments, Health, Wellness and Ergonomics, Practice Management, HR and Accounting, Practice Transitions
Patients, Patients, Patience?
Posted 8/8/2025 by seanepp in The Practice Buyer's Corner - Random Musings from the Buy-Side   |  Comments: 0  |   Views: 264
What is the fundamental asset being conveyed in the sale of a dental practice? Nope, it is not how much revenue or EBITDA the practice generates.   It is THE PATIENT BASE! This applies primarily to practices providing hygiene services be they a) general dentistry, or b) pediatric and periodontic...  Read More
Categories: Health, Wellness and Ergonomics, Hygiene, Marketing, Practice Management, HR and Accounting, Practice Transitions
When Is It The “Right Time” To Sell My Practice?
Posted 7/31/2025 by seanepp in The Practice Buyer's Corner - Random Musings from the Buy-Side   |  Comments: 0  |   Views: 385
When Is It The “Right Time” To Sell My Practice?
“If you are waiting for the right time…  Time never comes.  Time only goes.” There are plenty of pundits and experts to weigh in on when and how any business owner should monetize their business.  Dentistry is no different.  Many of these same pundits have a vested interest in – and inherent...  Read More
Categories: Financial Planning and Investments, Health, Wellness and Ergonomics, Marketing, Practice Management, HR and Accounting, Practice Transitions
Our National Hygiene Conundrum
Posted 7/17/2025 by seanepp in The Practice Buyer's Corner - Random Musings from the Buy-Side   |  Comments: 0  |   Views: 229
Our National Hygiene Conundrum
Current State: A confluence of events over the last several years has created the most challenging workforce environment to date for practices seeking to hire and retain dental hygienists (“RDH”).            The COVID Era caused middle-level providers across all healthcare verticals to leave their...  Read More
Categories: Financial Planning and Investments, Hygiene, Practice Management, HR and Accounting, Practice Transitions
Demystifying "Private Equity"
Posted 7/1/2025 by seanepp in The Practice Buyer's Corner - Random Musings from the Buy-Side   |  Comments: 0  |   Views: 285
What is Private Equity ("PE")?  Anyone can Google this.  But what is it real role in the dental industry, healthcare and more broadly? In my experience, "private equity" (including Venture Capital) is simply the most expensive money that any business owner can borrow.  Beyond the capital costs -...  Read More
Dusting Off My Dental Chops
Posted 3/31/2025 by seanepp in The Practice Buyer's Corner - Random Musings from the Buy-Side   |  Comments: 0  |   Views: 310
Wow, 2025.  I've been involved in group dentistry for 25 years...yikes.   Lots of things going on in the world.   How are events impacting practice valuations, sales and the health of the overall dental economy? This blog is intended to help demystify the valuation and transition process and...  Read More
Categories: Financial Planning and Investments, Marketing, Practice Management, HR and Accounting, Practice Transitions
Demystifying "EBITDA"
Posted 5/8/2019 by seanepp in The Practice Buyer's Corner - Random Musings from the Buy-Side   |  Comments: 0  |   Views: 707
Good morning fellow Townies! Just got back from the AAO event in Los Angeles and met with many fantastic practice owners and transition advisors.  Great event! A recurring topic of conversation was around the term "EBITDA" and what that represents in the context of a given practice's financial...  Read More
Dusting Off My Dental Chops
Posted 4/26/2019 by seanepp in The Practice Buyer's Corner - Random Musings from the Buy-Side   |  Comments: 1  |   Views: 389
Hey Townies, So, after spending ~3 years in the behavioral health field I'm excited to be back in the dental industry.  Feels good. Please LMK if there are any particular topics you'd be interested in discussing here - practice valuations, transitions, partnerships, associateships, JV structures,...  Read More
The Dental Summit 2015
Posted 7/23/2015 by seanepp in The Practice Buyer's Corner - Random Musings from the Buy-Side   |  Comments: 0  |   Views: 402
Wow, late July already. I hope everyone has had a successful start to 2015 and is enjoying their summers thus far. I wanted to share some talks given recently at the . Speakers included DSO operators large and small, industry consultants, leading vendors, and many highly experienced doctors,...  Read More
State of the Union 4Q14
Posted 10/28/2014 by seanepp in The Practice Buyer's Corner - Random Musings from the Buy-Side   |  Comments: 0  |   Views: 432
Fellow Townies, 2014 has been a remarkably unremarkable year in many ways. A solid but resoundingly average year. Known challenges still abound - declining insurance reimbursement rates and ever increasing overhead costs. What challenges are folks not aware of and/or intentionally ignoring? ...  Read More
Proposal? Letter of Intent (LOI)? Exclusivity?
Posted 9/30/2014 by seanepp in The Practice Buyer's Corner - Random Musings from the Buy-Side   |  Comments: 0  |   Views: 1010
So, you're in the process of selling your practice? You may be receiving written offers with various titles - term sheet, proposal, Letter of Intent, etc. Which of these documents are substantive and which terms are legally binding if you execute the document? It is very easy to get confused. ...  Read More
New Transition White Paper Released
Posted 7/10/2014 by seanepp in The Practice Buyer's Corner - Random Musings from the Buy-Side   |  Comments: 0  |   Views: 14888
For those who are not already subscribers to our newsletters, you can download our current white paper on practice transitions .  Read More
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