BD (Becton, Dickinson and Company) has agreed to acquire the Critical Care product group from Edwards Lifesciences in an all-cash deal valued at $4.2bn.
The Critical Care product group will continue to operate out of Irvine, California, US.
It will operate under the leadership of Katie Szyman, the current corporate vice president of Critical Care for Edwards.
Subject to customary closing conditions, including antitrust and foreign investment approvals, the transaction is expected to close by the end of this year.
After-tax cash proceeds from the sale will be used by Edwards on strategic growth investments.
Edwards also plans to utilise the after-tax proceeds to fund strategic investments in technologies for patients with aortic, mitral, tricuspid, and pulmonic conditions, as well as to explore new therapeutic areas for interventional heart failure.
The company is committed to building a comprehensive portfolio for structural heart disease through innovation, indication expansions, and generating robust clinical evidence.
The decision to sell the Critical Care unit to BD marks a shift from Edwards' previously announced intention to spin off the business.
Edwards CEO Bernard Zovighian said: “Edwards’ underlying rationale for separating Critical Care remains the same: we are laser-focused on pursuing a strategy centred on structural heart disease.
“Our goal is to serve large unmet patient needs with our differentiated innovations while extending our global leadership, delivering sustainable growth and increasing shareholder value.
"Critical Care has made significant contributions to our company and has a long history of pioneering innovation. We believe this transaction will strengthen Edwards, Critical Care and BD, paving the way for both companies to deliver even greater value to patients.”
Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley acted as financial advisers while Skadden Arps provided legal counsel to Edwards on the deal.
In April this year, BD launched the BD FACSDiscover S8 Cell Sorters worldwide, expanding research tool access in cell biology, cancer research, and immunology.
