FTC Requests Additional Info Before Approving Abbott Labs, St. Jude Tie-Up
July 12 2016 - 6:37PM
Dow Jones News
By Ezequiel Minaya
The Federal Trade Commission has requested additional
information from Abbott Laboratories and St. Jude Medical Inc.,
which are attempting to close a $25 billion deal combining two of
the leading makers of heart-related devices.
The request was made by federal authorities on Monday, Abbott
said in a regulatory filing.
Federal regulators may be taking a closer look out of concern of
the shrinking number of vendors supplying hospitals in the
merger-crazed health care sector.
In April, Abbott struck the deal to acquire St. Jude Medical.
For Abbott, the acquisition is a way to bulk up its medical-devices
business to better compete against rivals Medtronic PLC and Boston
Scientific Corp. Abbott said it was also aiming to gain a better
negotiating position with its hospital customers, which themselves
have become larger and more powerful in recent years.
Abbott has an eclectic mix of businesses that include
nutritional drinks like Ensure, glucose monitors for diabetes
patients, and selling branded generic pharmaceuticals in
international markets.
When combined, the merged company will have annual
cardiovascular sales of $8.7 billion. The companies expect the deal
to close in the fourth quarter.
Some analysts have expressed concern that the power balance may
toggle back to device-makers as the industry consolidates.
Write to Ezequiel Minaya at Ezequiel.Minaya@wsj.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
July 12, 2016 18:22 ET (22:22 GMT)
Copyright (c) 2016 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.
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