Zimmer Holdings Inc. (ZMH) and Biomet Inc. (BMET) are among the
bidders for AstraZeneca PLC's (AZN) Astra Tech, a Swedish unit that
makes dental implants and medical devices, Bloomberg News reported
Thursday, citing two people with direct knowledge of the
matter.
Nobel Biocare Holding AG (NOBN.VX), Straumann Holding AG
(STMN.EB), Dentsply International Inc. (XRAY) and buyout firms
Cinven Ltd. and Nordic Capital also are involved in the sale, along
with other device makers and private-equity firms, the sources
said. Advent International Corp., a private-equity firm based in
Boston, has pulled out of the race, one of the people told
Bloomberg.
Sale underwriter JPMorgan Chase & Co. (JPM) in February sent
information about Astra Tech to prospective buyers, with
first-round bids due this week, one of the sources said. The lineup
for the auction's second round should be clearer by the end of next
week, they said.
The unit could be sold whole or in parts, they said. It might
fetch between $1.8 billion and $2.1 billion, analysts at Sanford C.
Bernstein wrote in a Nov. 17 note.
Representatives of Nobel, Zimmer, Biomet and Dentsply didn't
immediately return calls seeking comment, Bloomberg said. Officials
at Cinven and Advent declined to comment. A spokesman for Nordic
Capital couldn't immediately be reached.
Straumann Chief Executive Beat Spalinger said Feb. 15 that his
Basel, Switzerland, company would consider acquisition
opportunities, including Astra Tech. On Thursday, a Straumann
spokesman declined to comment.
Full story at
http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2011-03-17/zimmer-biomet-nobel-said-to-be-among-bidders-for-astrazeneca-dental-unit.html
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