A Medical Device Daily
SurModics (Eden Prairie, Minnesota), a provider of drug delivery and surface modification technologies to the healthcare industry, reported that it has entered into a credit agreement with Wells Fargo Bank. The agreement extends to SurModics up to $25 million under an unsecured revolving credit facility for a term of two years.
"Our profitable business model and healthy financial position allowed us to take advantage of the current low interest rate environment," said Phil Ankeny, senior vice president/CFO. "Our balance sheet is strong, with approximately $70 million of cash and no debt as of December 31, 2008. This new credit line serves to enhance our liquidity position and provide additional flexibility even though the Company has no immediate plans to carry a balance."
SurModics' core offerings include: drug delivery technologies (coatings, microparticles, nanoparticles, and implants); surface modification coating technologies that impart lubricity, prohealing, and biocompatibility capabilities; and components for in vitro diagnostic test kits and specialized surfaces for cell culture and microarrays.
In other financing news:
• Robotic surgery system maker Intuitive Surgical (Sunnyvale, California) said it will buy back up to $300 million in stock.
Half of that amount will be bought from Goldman Sachs. Most of the shares bought from Goldman will be purchased in the next two weeks, and that portion of the deal will be completed by June.
The other $150 million in stock will be bought on the open market, with the timing chosen by Intuitive, which makes the da Vinci robotic surgical system
Shares of the company, which makes the da Vinci surgical system, finished at $91.69 on Wednesday. At that price, Intuitive Surgical would be able to buy back about 3.3 million of its shares. As of Jan. 31, about 39.2 million shares of Intuitive were on the market.
As of December 31, 2008 the company had about $902 million of cash, cash equivalents and investments.
• Biofield (King of Prussia, Pennsylvania), a medical technology company which develops and acquires noninvasive diagnostic medical devices to assist in detecting and preventing cancer and other illnesses, reported that it has ived an equity investment of $110,000 as well as a conversion $422,000 of debt and accrued interest.
The company's largest non-affiliated institutional investor, the Capital Growth Equity Fund I, had previously acted as lead investor in the company's 2005 $1.3 million debt financing. The Equity Fund's 2005 investment occurred when the company's sole focus was on securing FDA approval to distribute its proprietary Biofield Diagnostic System for the early detection of breast cancer and prior to control by the company's current management team.
The company has since reoriented and expanded its energies to focus to generate sales both in the U.S. and foreign markets, by offering not only its proprietary non-invasive technologies but to also acquire other third-party non-invasive detection and prevention technologies to expand its product portfolio.
The company said it is currently focusing on distributing this expanded product portfolio in China (including Hong Kong, Taiwan and Macau), India, the Philippines, Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, Vietnam, and other parts of Asia, Mexico, Latin America and Europe.