The largest DSOs are largely owned by various private equity firms that have helped fuel the companies’ technology investments and network expansions.
Here is the ownership structure for the 10 largest DSOs in the U.S., according to the most recent publicly available transactions and Medix data:
1. Heartland Dental (Effingham, Ill.): KKR (majority)
2. Aspen Dental (Chicago): Leonard Green + Ares
3. PDS Health (Henderson, Nev.): Dentist-owned
4. MB2 Dental (Dallas): Warburg Pincus, KKR and Charlesbank
5. Smile Brands (Irvine, Calif.): Gryphon Investors
6. Sonrava Health (Orange, Calif.): New Mountain Capital
7. Smile Doctors (Dallas): Thomas H. Lee Partners, Linden Capital Partners and dentist partners
8. Affordable Care (Morrisville, N.C.): Blackstone and KKR
9. Dental Care Alliance (Sarasota, Fla.): Lender owned
10. Specialized Dental Partners (Franklin, Tenn.): Quad-C Management and Quad-C Management
