Alcon AG plans to acquire Lensar Inc. for up to $430 million in a transaction expected to close in the latter half of the year. The acquisition will add Lensar’s Ally robotic cataract laser treatment system, Streamline software technology and Lensar legacy laser system to Alcon’s cataract surgery portfolio and expand global access to Lensar’s femtosecond laser technology.
Quest Diagnostics Inc. and Pathai Inc. established a forward-looking deal with multiple components and room for growth. The collaboration includes Quest’s acquisition of Pathai Diagnostics – the division that provides anatomic and digital pathology laboratory services – and licensing of Pathai’s Aisight digital pathology image management system. The companies also said they may work together on development of Pathai’s algorithm products and that Quest will be a preferred provider for Pathai’s biopharmaceutical clinical laboratory services.
Life science companies and the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative have not always seen eye to eye on issues such as compulsory licensing, but industry might be supportive of a remark by U.S. Trade Representative Katherine Tai about companies that are provided with anticompetitive breathing by their host governments with noticeable anticompetitive effect.
Johnson Matthey plc agreed to sell its medical device components business to Montagu Private Equity for £550 million ($700 million) on a cash-free, debt-free basis. For Montagu, the deal is part of its expanding health care portfolio. Earlier in 2024 the private equity firm, which is the primary shareholder in RTI Surgical Inc., acquired Cook Biotech Inc. from Cook Medical Inc. and merged the two companies.
Med-tech deal value in February jumped to $255.61 million, an increase of 137.23% from the $107.75 million in deals from January, yet below the 2023 monthly average of $886.13 million. On the M&A front, med-tech transactions hit their lowest point since May 2019, totaling only $16 million.
Haemonetics Corp. appears ready to make a bit of a retro investment, as it entered into a definitive agreement to acquire Advanced Cooling Therapy Inc. (dba Attune Medical) for $160 million at closing plus undisclosed additional contingent payments. Attune manufactures the U.S. FDA-cleared Ensoetm device, which cools the esophagus during radiofrequency cardiac ablation procedures, a treatment for atrial fibrillation whose days appeared numbered.
South Korea’s Cell & Growth Factor Biotechnology Co. Ltd. (CG Bio) became the largest shareholder of Busan-based Inosys Korea after claiming a 34.7% stake in the embattled orthopedic implant med-tech firm.
Continuing its aggressive buying spree, Bruker Corp. entered into a definitive share purchase agreement with Tecfin S.à r.l. to acquire molecular diagnostics (MDx) company Elitechgroup SAS for €870 million (US$943.5 million), excluding the Elitech clinical chemistry business. The deal is expected to close in the second quarter of 2024 and will be funded with a mix of cash on hand and debt financing.
Zimmer Biomet Holdings Inc.’s Rosa robotics surgical assistant snapped up its fourth application with the U.S. FDA’s 510(k) clearance for use in shoulder replacement surgery. Over the past five years, the system has built a portfolio that includes partial and total knee replacement and total hip replacement.