NEW YORK – BioMerieux on Tuesday announced it has entered into an agreement to acquire Specific Diagnostics for an acquisition price equivalent to 3.3 percent of BioMerieux’s market capitalization as of April 11, paid with a combination of cash and shares issued to Specific Diagnostics shareholders.
According to investment website YCharts, BioMerieux had a market capitalization of $12.63 billion on April 11, which would value the acquisition price for Specific Diagnostics at about $416.8 million.
Marcy l’Etoile, France-based BioMerieux said its issuance of new shares for the acquisition will result in a share dilution of approximately 1 percent, which it intends to offset over time with a share buyback after the closing of the acquisition.
Mountain View, California-based Specific has developed the Specific Reveal Rapid AST system, a rapid antimicrobial susceptibility test system that delivers phenotypic AST results from positive blood cultures.
According to BioMerieux, the system uses metabolomic signature technology and an instrument with a targeted menu, small footprint, and modular design that enables adaptable throughput. The system seamlessly integrates with BioMerieux’s Sepsis Solution, which includes its Bact/Alert Virtuo, Vitek MS Prime, Biofire BCID2, Vidas PCT, and Vitek 2 systems.
With the addition of the Specific Reveal Rapid AST, its Sepsis Solution allows same-day AST results for Gram-negative bacteria to enable more targeted therapy and improve patient outcomes, BioMerieux said.
In March, BioMerieux announced it had received 510(k) clearance from the US Food and Drug Administration for its Vitek MS Prime MALDI-TOF mass spectrometry identification system.
“By combining the advanced technology of the Specific Reveal Rapid AST solution for bloodstream infections with our existing solutions, we are increasing the ability of laboratories to deliver results in record time, especially in cases of very critical infections such as sepsis, which require urgent and appropriate treatment,” BioMerieux Executive VP and Chief Medical Officer Mark Miller said in a statement.
