Dive Brief Haemonetics has struck a deal to buy the interventional cardiology company OpSens for around $253 million. OpSens sells two pressure-sensing guidewires for use in percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) and transcatheter aortic valve replacement (TAVR) procedures. The devices helped OpSens generate sales of C$34.2 million ($25.2 million) over the first nine months of its current fiscal year. Analysts at Needham told investors the takeover is consistent with the M&A strategy outlined by management and will give Haemonetics devices that complement its vascular closure products. Dive Insight Haemonetics created its vascular closure business early in 2021 by acquiring Cardiva Medical for $510 million. On a quarterly results conference call in May, an analyst said the subsequent growth has been “phenomenal.” Haemonetics voiced an appetite for more deals on its next quarterly call, when CFO James D’Arecca set out plans to accelerate growth through M&A. D’Arecca and the rest of the ...
Biogen just closed its Reata Pharmaceuticals buyout in September. Now, 100-plus Reata staffers are losing their jobs because their roles were already covered at the Massachusetts Big Biotech. That didn’t take long.Just two weeks after Biogen completed its buyout of Reata Pharmaceuticals, the combined company is trimming its staff. In a recent Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification (WARN) notice sent to state officials in Texas, Reata said it’s cutting 113 positions. The layoffs will take effect late next month. Reata employed 321 people at the start of the year, an annual Securities and Exchange Commission filing (PDF) shows, so the layoffs are set to affect about a third of the acquired company’s staff. Biogen inked its Reata buyout in July, picking up the potential blockbuster Skyclarys, which is approved by the FDA to treat the rare, inherited neurological disorder Friedreich ataxia. The companies completed the deal in September. At the ...
Dive Brief Johnson & Johnson’s spinoff of its consumer health business has positioned the company to achieve top-tier medtech growth and profitability, according to analysts at RBC Capital Markets. J&J recently split off its consumer health unit to make a standalone company, turning itself into the only global healthcare company with pharma and medtech in a single portfolio. RBC analysts expect the new structure to support the growth of a “bellwether” healthcare stock. On the medtech side, the analysts identified J&J’s leadership position in 11 categories, shift to fast-growing markets, investment in robotics and capacity for M&A as factors that position it to outperform its peers. Dive Insight The RBC analysts praised J&J’s current medtech portfolio, noting that the company is a leader in 11 categories and has 12 platforms with sales of more than $1 billion. The portfolio is the result of a “clear winning strategy,” they wrote in ...
Takeda Pharmaceutical drug Exkivity failed the confirmatory study required of its 2021 accelerated approval. Our recap of other recent regulatory developments includes a partial clinical hold on a cancer drug, a Covid-19 vaccine authorization, and several drug approvals in the U.S. and beyond. By FRANK VINLUAN Accelerated approval offers a way to more quickly bring patients drugs for diseases that have few treatment options. But that speedy path to the market comes with the understanding that the FDA can take its regulatory blessing away—unless the company takes its drug away first. That is what Takeda Pharmaceutical has decided to do with its cancer drug, Exkivity. Following discussions with the FDA, the Japanese pharmaceutical giant is voluntarily withdrawing Exkivity from the market. Exkivity treats non-small cell lung cancer by targeting epidermal growth factor (EGFR). That cancer protein must have exon 20 mutations—the same genetic signature addressed by Johnson & Johnson’s Rybrevant. ...
BY SEAN WHOOLEY Caption Guidance on the Venue Go system in use. [Image courtesy of GE HealthCare] GE HealthCare (Nasdaq: GEHC)+ announced today that it launched its Venue point-of-care ultrasound systems with AI-driven Caption Guidance. Chicago-based GE HealthCare says the Venue family is the first of its ultrasound guidance to include Caption Guidance. The company added the AI-driven imaging guidance to its arsenal when it acquired Caption Health earlier this year. Caption Guidance, an optional add-on, offers new capabilities at the point of care with diagnostic-quality cardiac images. It supports clinicians in a wide range of clinical settings, like emergency departments, critical care wards and anesthesiology. GE HealthCare says the Caption Guidance technology offers clinicians step-by-step instructions to acquire ultrasound for cardiac assessments. It helps providers — even those who aren’t ultrasound experts — by addressing training and skill barriers to ultrasound usage. This, in turn, expands ultrasound access. According ...
Sanofi appears to be considering a buyout of cancer drugmaker Mirati Therapeutics, according to Bloomberg reporting on Thursday, citing sources familiar with the matter. Deliberations surrounding the potential acquisition are ongoing and there is no certainty that Sanofi will push through with the deal, Bloomberg noted. Still, the possibility of the buyout has energized the market and Mirati was trading 45% higher Thursday afternoon in reaction to the rumors. A Sanofi spokesperson declined to confirm or deny the acquisition in a statement to Reuters, saying that the company does not comment on market rumors. Mirati was likewise tight-lipped about the matter. This is not new territory for Mirati. In October 2021, Merck had expressed interest in acquiring Mirati, according to people briefed on the matter. In November 2022, Mirati was attracting “fresh takeover interest” from large pharma companies, also reported by Bloomberg. At the time, the California-based biotech was still ...
Acquisition includes company’s inflammatory disease medicines. Image Credit: Adobe Stock Images/SciePro Amgen revealed in a company press release that it has officially finished its purchase of Horizon Therapeutics for an approximate value of $27.8 billion. According to the company, the acquisition includes: • Alignment with Amgen’s core strategy of delivering innovative medicines that make a significant difference for patients suffering from serious diseases. • Strengthening of Amgen’s leading inflammation portfolio by adding first-in-class, early-in-lifecycle medicines such as Tepezza (teprotumumab-trbw), Krystexxa (pegloticase) and Uplizna (inebilizumab-cdon), which treat rare inflammatory diseases. • Leveraging of Amgen’s world-class capabilities in biologics research and development, process development and manufacturing, as well as Amgen’s presence in more than 100 countries around the world. • Generating robust cash flow to support capital allocation priorities, including ongoing investment in innovation while sustaining a commitment to an investment grade credit rating. • Acceleration of revenue growth; expected to be ...
By Jennifer Markarian Pictured: Illustration of students sitting at a table/iStock, undrey Although the biopharma industry tends to focus on high-skill workers with advanced science and engineering degrees, just over half of entry-level jobs in the U.S. life sciences require skills considered middle and lower level that could be filled by people with less than a four-year degree, according to a recent report on life sciences workforce trends by the Coalition of State Biosciences Institutes (CSBI), which promotes bioscience education and workforce development, and research group TEConomy Partners. “The share of middle-skills workers needed for entry-level positions in life sciences has held steady over the past decade,” Liisa Bozinovic, chair of CSBI, told BioSpace. Individuals with degrees from the U.S. network of two-year Advanced Technical Education biotechnology programs, which provide hands-on, industry-relevant training, have been successfully filling these positions, she added. Organizations Collaborate to Promote Biotech Education InnovATEBIO, a National ...
Seven months after Travere Therapeutics’ flagship drug received accelerated FDA approval in a rare kidney disease, the molecule has fallen short of the key goal of its confirmatory test. It’s the small molecule’s second Phase 3 failure this year. By FRANK VINLUAN A Travere Therapeutics drug that won speedy approval early this year for a rare autoimmune kidney disorder has failed to meet the key goal of its confirmatory study. Still, the biotech points to data trends favoring patients treated with its drug, Filspari, and it aims to seek full approval. But even if the FDA permits the drug to remain on the market, the disappointing trial results reported Thursday call into question the commercial prospects of a product once projected to become a blockbuster seller. Filspari was developed to treat immunoglobulin A nephropathy (IgAN), in which the buildup of antibodies in the kidneys damages these organs. The FDA awarded ...
Dive Brief Siemens Healthineers has acquired Aspekt Solutions to strengthen the service offering at its Varian cancer therapy unit. Neither party disclosed the value of the deal. Aspekt supports radiation oncology sites — the type of health centers that use Varian devices — with services such as dosimetry consulting, clinic management, technology evaluation and staffing. Varian sees the acquisition as complementary to its Advanced Oncology Solutions unit, which provides professional and clinical services to improve the implementation of its technologies. Dive Insight Varian, a provider of radiation oncology equipment and software, pitches its AOS unit as enabling sites to adopt technologies, improve quality and expand capacity. The unit collaborates with radiation oncology sites to simplify data entry, optimize databases, reduce variation between dosimetrists and train staff on safety. In doing so, Varian aims to address challenges such as the rising cost of care and staff shortages. “Through our AOS offerings, ...
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