Johnson & Johnson to buy Abbott optics biz for $4.3B

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) said today that it inked a deal to pick up Abbott‘s (NYSE:ABT) medical optics business for $4.3 billion in cash. The deal for Abbott’s subsidiary Abbott Medical Optics, which reported sales of $1.1 billion, includes its portfolio of ophthalmic products covering cataract surgery, laser refractive surgery and consumer eye health. “Eye health is 1 of the largest, fastest-growing and most underserved segments in health care today. With the acquisition of Abbott Medical Optics’ strong and differentiated surgical ophthalmic portfolio, coupled with our world-leading Acuvue contact lens business, we will become a more broad-based leader in vision care. Importantly, with this acquisition we will enter cataract surgery – 1 of the most commonly performed surgeries and the number 1 cause of preventable blindness,”  J&J vision care companies group chairwoman Ashley McEvoy said in a press release. The companies said they expect to close the deal in the 1st quarter of 2017, with Johnson & Johnson saying it expects it to be “modestly accretive immediately to adjusted earnings per share.” Following the close, the business will be folded into the medical devices segment as a separate platform within J&J Vision Care. Abbott shares are up 1.6% today, trading at $41.79 as of 3:51 p.m. EDT. Abbott is currently set to pick up St. Jude Medical (NYSE:STJ) for $25 billion in a deal it announced in April, ...
Source: Mass Device - Category: Medical Equipment Authors: Tags: Mergers & Acquisitions Optical/Ophthalmic Wall Street Beat Abbott Johnson & Johnson Source Type: news