The average American is living longer than they did decades ago, creating a larger need for tailor-made senior housing, assisted living facilities and caretaking services.
One metro Atlanta company that provides pharmacy services to long-term care facilities is now a public company after 20 years in business. Executives with Cobb County-based Guardian Pharmacy Services rung the closing bell Tuesday at the New York Stock Exchange.
Guardian went public in late September, raising $112 million. The company had a market cap of more than $1 billion at the end of trading Tuesday.
Founded in 2004, the company operates 50 pharmacies, including two in Georgia, and provides prescription and drug-related services to more than 174,000 residents across 36 states. With America’s aging demographics as a tail wind, Guardian Chief Financial Officer David Morris said his company has the potential to continue rapidly growing.
“We’re purpose-built and focused on the assisted living communities and their special needs,” he said. “The permanent assisted living pharmacy (industry) is well-positioned for the growth that’s happening over the next 10-plus years.”
Credit: Courtesy NYSE
Credit: Courtesy NYSE
From 2004 to 2022, the number of Americans 65 and older increased 67% and surpassed 58 million people, Guardian wrote in regulatory filings. The company estimates the senior population will reach 82 million by 2050.
Fred Burke, the company’s CEO and president, said residents in long-term health care facilities typically have different pharmaceutical needs than most people, balancing multiple prescriptions and following strict drug regiments. Guardian’s technology-focused services are designed to simplify the pharmacy experience in those health care setting and assist caregivers, Burke said.
Credit: Courtesy NYSE
Credit: Courtesy NYSE
The company’s headquarters is roughly 25,000 square feet within the Galleria 300 office building in Atlanta’s Cumberland submarket. About 80 of Guardian’s 3,200 employees are based at the headquarters, which Burke said bolsters the company’s administrative and tech services.
“(We have) a very sophisticated team in our Atlanta support group,” he said. “Atlanta has been really great to allow us to recruit this talent that has served us so very well.”
Trading under the stock ticker “GRDN,” the company’s Sept. 26 public offering included 8 million shares of class A common stock at $14 apiece, which Reuters reported was the low-end of Guardian’s target range. As of closing Wednesday, Guardian’s stock was valued at $18.33 per share.
Guardian slightly exceeded its goal to raise $108 million from the public offering.
The company’s revenue last year was more than $1 billion, a 16% increase from the prior year. It turned a net profit of nearly $38 million in 2023, a 24% decrease from 2022.
By going public, Burke said the company improved its balance sheet, raised additional capital and is poised to grow its market share. Today, Guardian serves 12% of the assisted living sector, which is already the most of any company.
“We are the leader in that space nationwide, but we like to think about the 88% that’s left,” he said. “This public offering really is going to provide the resources to continue what we’ve been doing.”
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