Eckert & Ziegler acquires American cancer specialist - impact on earnings due to one-time expenses
Eckert & Ziegler Strahlen- und Medizintechnik AG / Key word(s): Acquisition
17.09.2013 07:48
Dissemination of an Ad hoc announcement according to § 15 WpHG, transmitted by DGAP - a company of EQS Group AG.
The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement.
Berlin, September 17, 2013. Eckert & Ziegler BEBIG s.a., Eckert & Ziegler AG's medical device division, is to acquire the prostate cancer implants business of the American company Biocompatibles Inc. for $5 million. Biocompatibles Inc., a BTG International group company, is based in Connecticut and is the fourth largest provider of such products in the United States and generated sales of approximately EUR8 million in 2012. Biocompatibles Inc. had voluntarily suspended manufacture and delivery of its products in May 2013 following claims of shortcomings in its documentation of the manufacturing process by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.
Eckert & Ziegler is now acquiring the division and hopes to remedy these shortcomings quickly so that it can resume delivery. The management expects to be able to win back customers who have migrated elsewhere as Biocompatibles has developed several innovations that improve the use of implants and has patented these unique solutions. By purchasing the division, Eckert & Ziegler will be able to offer these enhanced solutions to its European customers too. In the medium term, the Eckert & Ziegler Group intends to use Biocompatibles as an American distribution platform for its entire range of tumor irradiation products. Eckert & Ziegler expects unforeseen additional costs of up to EUR1.2 million for start-up losses until the American implant business can be resumed. The forecast for fiscal year 2013 has therefore fallen from EUR2.15 to EUR1.95 net profit per share, equivalent to the value of the previous year (2012).
Information and Explaination of the Issuer to this News:
'The acquisition is a strategic investment decision and represents a milestone in our company's history despite the one-time expenses for entering the US implant business. The North American market is the largest single market for medical technology and offers excellent growth opportunities. The implants market is valued at some EUR45 million and the market for tumor radiation equipment at around EUR70 million. The acquisition offers us potential for synergies in markets, products and technologies that will strengthen our market position. Thanks to our long-standing experience in isotope technology, we are confident that we will be able to introduce FDA-compliant manufacturing processes at the Oxford site quickly and recommence production again soon,' said Dr. Edgar Löffler, Managing Director of Eckert & Ziegler BEBIG s.a. and Member of the Executive Board of Eckert & Ziegler AG.
About Eckert & Ziegler
Eckert & Ziegler Group (ISIN DE0005659700) is one of the world's largest providers of isotope technology for radiation therapy and nuclear medicine with 630 employees and annual sales of EUR 120 million. Eckert & Ziegler BEBIG s.a., an associated company, manufactures brachytherapy products and is a European market leader in the prostate implant segment. www.ezag.com
Your contact:
Eckert & Ziegler AG, Karolin Riehle, Investor Relations Robert-Rössle-Str. 10, 13125 Berlin
Tel.: +49 (0) 30 / 94 10 84-138
karolin.riehle@ezag.de
www.ezag.de
17.09.2013 DGAP's Distribution Services include Regulatory Announcements, Financial/Corporate News and Press Releases.
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Language: English
Company: Eckert & Ziegler Strahlen- und Medizintechnik AG Robert-Rössle-Str.10
13125 Berlin
Germany
Phone: 49 30 941084-138
Fax: 49 30 941084-112
E-mail: karolin.riehle@ezag.de
Internet: www.ezag.de
ISIN: DE0005659700
WKN: 565970
Listed: Regulierter Markt in Frankfurt (Prime Standard), Stuttgart; Freiverkehr in Berlin, Düsseldorf, Hamburg, München
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