In 2019 M&A Has Continued to Play a Critical Role in Growth Strategies

• Boston Scientific acquired London-based BTG plc (maker of products used in minimally-invasive procedures targeting cancer and vascular diseases, as well as specialty pharmaceuticals) for $4b.

• 3M closed its $6.7b deal of Acelity, a developer of wound care and specialty surgical management products, in October 2019.

• J&J’s Ethicon unit completed its $3.4b acquisition of Auris Health (developer of robotic endoscopic technologies for lung cancer), as well as the $2.8 b divestiture of its Advanced Sterilization Products to Fortive (NTSE:FTV).

• Cantel Medical closed its $775m to acquisition of Hu-Friedy, a maker of dental instruments and reprocessing equipment.

• Medtronic in June offered $316m for Epix Therapeutics (formerly Advanced Cardiac Therapeutics, a maker of a catheter-based, temperature-controlled cardiac ablation systems).

• The U.S. Federal Trade Commission in April gave final approval to Fresenius Medical Care (NYSE:FMS; ETR:FRE) for its $2b acquisition of NxStage Medical (provider of conventional dialysis machines), which initially closed in February.

• Boston Scientific in June closed on its $465m buyout of spinal implant maker Vertiflex, a manufacturer of minimally invasive technologies for lumbar spinal stenosis.

• Smith & Nephew earlier this year closed its acquisition of Brainlab‘s orthopedic joint reconstruction business.

• J&J’s Ethicon unit paid $400m in cash to Takeda Pharmaceutical (TSE:4502; NYSE:TAK) for its TachoSil fibrin patch. TachoSil is a surgical patch developed to enable safe and quick bleeding control. It is indicated for use with manual compression as an adjunct to haemostasis in cardiovascular and hepatic surgery. The divestiture is part of Takeda’s strategy to reduce its debt.

• CONMED in February closed on its $365m buy of Buffalo Filter, a manufacturer focused on surgical smoke evacuation and laparoscopic visibility technologies.

• RTI Surgical in March closed on its $300m purchase of Paradigm Spine, a provider of motion preservation products and non-fusion spinal implant technology.

• Marmon Holdings, Inc., a Berkshire Hathaway industrial holding company, is buying Colson Medical Companies, a maker of highly-engineered plates, screws, and related precision tools for orthopedic surgery. Colson's businesses include cumed, OsteoMed, MicroAire, Precision Edge, Apex, and Skeletal Kinetics.

• Stryker announced plans to buy Wright Medical Group for $4b. Wright is leader in the upper extremities (shoulder, elbow, wrist and hand), lower extremities (foot and ankle) and biologics markets, which are among the fastest growing segments in orthopedics.

Keywords: Healthcare Investment Banking, Healthcare M&A, Healthcare mergers