Zimmer Holdings to Buy Biomet for $13.35 Billion (NYTimes)
Zimmer Holdings agreed on Thursday to acquire Biomet Inc. in a cash-and-stock deal valued at $13.35 billion, including debt. It will bring together two providers of orthopedic, surgical and dental products.
The deal, which has been approved by the boards of both companies, comes amid a wave of health care and pharmaceutical deals. This week,Novartis and GlaxoSmithKlineannounced $20 billion in deals, and Valeant made a $45 billion hostile takeover bid for Allergan.
It is also the latest successful exit for private equity. In 2007, Biomet was acquired for $11.3 billion by Blackstone, Goldman Sachs’s buyout group, Kohlberg Kravis Roberts and TPG Capital.
“We believe that current demographic and macroeconomic trends affecting the health care industry will reward companies that successfully partner with other key stakeholders to improve patient care in a cost-effective manner,” said David C. Dvorak, Zimmer’s chief executive. “Together with Biomet we will expand the scope of our innovation programs and will enhance our efforts to provide integrated services and comprehensive solutions that address the needs of our customers.
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