Clínica de Marly S.A.

What it is

Clínica Marly is the oldest private health institution in Colombia, established in 1903. It offers hospital, medical, surgical, radiological and pharmaceutical services; the Bogotá complex covers 31,500 square metres with 130 hospital beds and 12 surgery rooms.

Its specialties run from anaesthesia and cardiology through bariatric and robotic surgery to haematology, oncology, bone-marrow transplant, and neonatology — in short, a full-service private hospital that competes at the top of Colombia’s private healthcare market.

In 2018 the group opened a second campus, Clínica de Marly Jorge Cavelier Gaviria, in the municipality of Chía, Cundinamarca, to serve the fast-growing north of Bogotá. The parent company also controls subsidiaries Litomédica S.A. and Cirurobótica Marly Litomédica S.A., which support surgical services.

Who owns it

Clínica de Marly S.A. was constituted by public deed on 31 December 1928 and became an open joint-stock company in March 1986, per resolution of the Comisión Nacional de Valores. The Cavelier family has effectively controlled the institution for three successive generations: Jorge E.

Cavelier entered as a founding shareholder in 1928 and became manager in 1954, giving the institution its decisive momentum.

The exact percentage held by the Cavelier family versus public shareholders is not disclosed in available sources; the stock is lightly traded on the BVC and no blocking-stake disclosure has been filed in sources accessible to this publication. The free float appears thin — the near-zero P/E ratio and static share price suggest very few shares actually change hands.

Who runs it

Since 2007, physician and urologist Dr. Luis Eduardo Cavelier Castro has served as General Manager (Gerente General) of Clínica de Marly, the third generation of his family to lead the institution. He oversees both campuses and makes all major investment decisions.

A CFO or separate board chair is not publicly named in available corporate-governance disclosures. The financial statements were authorised for issue by the board on 19 February 2025.

The money, in plain words

In 2024 the parent company brought in COP 267.5 billion (USD 78.9 million) in revenue — up 9% from 2023 — and kept COP 87.7 billion (USD 25.9 million) as profit after tax, a net profit margin of 32.8% (our calculation). That is exceptional for a hospital operator anywhere in the world, though a large chunk of reported income in 2024 came from gains on subsidiary investments rather than pure clinical fees; stripping those out leaves operating income of COP 59.8 billion (US$18 mn), still a healthy operating margin of about 22%.

For every peso shareholders have put in (opening equity), the company earned about 18 centavos back — a return on opening equity of 18.4% (our calculation), strong. The balance sheet carries virtually no bank debt: net cash stands at COP 13.1 billion (USD 3.9 million, our calculation), so the clinic owes almost nothing to bankers and funds its growth from its own earnings.

Management confirmed the original construction of the Chía campus was financed entirely from internal resources, and that discipline continues.

At the current share price of COP 8,500, (US$3)the whole company trades at a market value of just COP 91.3 billion (USD 26.9 million, our calculation) — barely one year’s profit, a price-to-earnings ratio of roughly 1× (our calculation). That looks either like a stunning bargain or a reflection of how thin the stock’s trading is; almost certainly the latter, since the Cavelier family retains effective control and few shares are ever sold.

Shareholders who do hold the stock collected a dividend yield of 12.1% in 2024, comfortably ahead of Colombian deposit rates.

What it is doing now

In December 2024 construction began on an expansion of the Chía campus — a new cardiopulmonary rehabilitation centre and day-hospital wing. The near-term plan calls for adding roughly 15,000 square metres at Chía, at a projected cost of COP 120 (US$0.04)–140 billion (USD 35–41 million).

That would be the largest single capital outlay in the company’s history and would be funded, the management says, from the company’s own cash generation.

Across both campuses, the group currently treats roughly 250,000 patients every six months. The Bogotá site has performed more than 3,000 bone-marrow transplants, a specialism that draws patients from across Latin America and supports premium pricing.

What to watch

• Healthcare reform risk. CEO Cavelier has said Colombia’s health-sector reform affects the whole industry, and the fate of that legislation will directly shape how insurers and state payers reimburse private hospitals like Marly.
• Chía expansion spend. A COP 120 (US$0.04)–140 billion construction project would absorb several years of free cash flow; cost overruns or licensing delays at the Cundinamarca municipality could weigh on results.
• Accounts-receivable risk. Management has flagged significant receivables problems with certain health insurers, including past difficulties with Saludcoop, Coomeva EPS and Medimás. Debtors of this kind are a persistent risk for any Colombian private hospital.
• Liquidity and price discovery. With a P/E of ~1× and a share price that has barely moved in years, MARLY is effectively an illiquid family-controlled company wearing a stock-exchange listing. Investors seeking an entry or exit point may find very little volume on the BVC.

This is news, not investment advice.