Medtronic Inc. shareholders approved the company's $43 billion
acquisition of Ireland's Covidien PLC on Tuesday, putting the deal
on track to close by the end of January or early February.
About 75% of Medtronic's shareholders voted in favor of the
deal, based on preliminary results. Covidien also said Tuesday that
its shareholders have approved the deal, leaving approval from
Ireland's High Court as the final hurdle to the deal's closing
The merger combines two of the world's largest medical-supply
companies. Medtronic, based in Minneapolis, will redomicile in
Ireland once the merger is completed, part of a wave of
controversial deals aimed at taking advantage of lower
corporate-tax rates overseas.
Investors had been concerned that the merger would be one of the
casualties of the Treasury's crackdown on inversions last year that
led some companies to call off deals. AbbVie Inc., for instance,
called off its $54 billion acquisition of Shire PLC in October.
Write to Chelsey Dulaney at Chelsey.Dulaney@wsj.com
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