Thursday, September 20, 2012

Boston Scientific to acquire BridgePoint Medical

     Boston Scientific (BSX) announced its intention to acquire BridgePoint Medical, a privately-held medical device company. The purchase price has not yet been disclosed, but the deal is expected to close by year end. BridgePoint Medical is the producer of catheters used for blood flow restoration in patients with coronary chronic total occlusions (CTO). BridgePoint's product line up, including the Crossbow and Stringray systems, allows patients to forgo invasive bypass surgery and and avoid long recovery periods. Under BridgePoint's CTO system, some patients may return home in as little as 24 hours.
  
     Overall, the acquisition of the CTO product lineup is consistent with BSX's goal to be a leading producer of interventional cardiology products. Over 500,000 coronary bypass surgeries are performed each year, and the Crossbow and Stringray products offer a less invasive alternative. More information on the valuation of BridgePoint is needed to fully understand the acquisition, but it is not expected to be accretive until after fiscal year 2013. Since the announcement, BSX has been relatively flat, trading up 50 bps to $5.81 versus broader market losses of 10 bps.

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