J&J in talks to buy Synthes for $20 billion: source

Share this
inShare
digg
Email
Print

Related News

J&J in talks to buy Synthes for $20 billion: report
Fri, Apr 15 2011
UPDATE 3-J&J in talks to buy Synthes for $20 bln-WSJ
Fri, Apr 15 2011
Special report: Dial 911-FOR-PROFIT--Just don't tell a firehouse
Fri, Apr 15 2011
Schneider serious about bidding for Tyco
Wed, Apr 13 2011
Markets fall on earnings caution, energy selloff
Mon, Apr 11 2011

Analysis & Opinion

Tech wrap: Google’s spending overshadows revenue growth
Obama vs Ryan: how the deficit plans compare

Related Topics

Health »
Deals »
Global Deals Data 2011 Q1 »
Inflows Outflows »

Stocks

Abbott Laboratories
ABT.N
$51.90
+0.90+1.76%
04/15/2011

Johnson & Johnson
JNJ.N
$60.56
+0.54+0.90%
04/15/2011

Medtronic Inc
MDT.N
$41.05
+0.33+0.81%
04/15/2011

By Jessica Hall

BOSTON | Sat Apr 16, 2011 11:28am EDT

(Reuters) - Johnson & Johnson is in preliminary talks to acquire Swiss medical device maker Synthes for a price which could be about $20 billion, a source familiar with the situation said on Saturday.

A deal at that price would mark an 11 percent premium over Synthes' current market capitalization of about $18 billion. It would allow healthcare conglomerate J&J to further diversify its healthcare business.

However, talks could still break down, said the source, who declined to be named because the talks are not public.

The medical device sector has been consolidating as pharmaceutical companies look to diversify away from drugs going off patent. Other recent medical device deals include the $5.8 billion acquisition of Beckman Coulter by Danaher Corp, announced in February.

Synthes shares closed up 6.2 percent in Switzerland, with traders citing market talk that the diversified healthcare company or U.S. medical device maker Medtronic Inc could be interested in buying the company.

J&J, which holds about $19 billion in cash, could not immediately be reached for comment on Saturday. "As a matter of policy we don't comment on speculation," J&J spokesman Bill Price said when asked on Friday. Synthes was not immediately available to comment.

News of the talks was first reported by the Wall Street Journal.

(Reporting by Jessica Hall in Boston; writing and additional reporting by Megan Davies in New York; editing by Bill Trott)