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ConMed
expands again
Jan. 14, 2003
By
MARRECCA FIORE
Observer-Dispatch
ConMed
Corp. has entered into an agreement to purchase a publicly
traded Pennsylvania company that develops and manufactures
sports medicine and trauma products.
ConMed
acquired two companies in December and one last week.
The
company plans to purchase Bionx Implants Inc., of Blue
Bell, Pa., for $4.35 a share or about $48 million, which
will be financed through ConMed's revolving credit facility.
"The
addition of the Bionx sports medicine and trauma products
will provide us with increased product depth,"
said Joseph J. Corasanti, ConMed's president and chief
operating officer. "Bionx also brings important
research and development capability in self-reinforced
polymers."
The
merger is subject to approval by Bionx's shareholders.
Shareholders who hold approximately 51 percent of Bionx
outstanding stock have irrevocably agreed to vote in
favor of the merger, a news release said.
Bionx
research and manufacturing will not be moved to Utica
following the acquisition, said Robert Shallish Jr.,
ConMed's chief financial officer. Research will continue
at Bionx's Pennsylvania and Tampere, Finland offices
and manufacturing will continue in Tampere.
Bionx
President and CEO Gerard S. Carlozzi said combining
the two companies into one would allow their products
to reach a greater number of customers.
ConMed
anticipates additional annualized revenues from the
Bionx of $18 million to $20 million. The impact on 2003
will depend on when the merger is completed.
"It
will add almost $20 million to their sports medicine
side," said stock analyst Gregory McLean, president
of Caruso McLean & Co. Inc. in Uticat. "That's
a 40 percent increase. That's very significant."
ConMed's
recent acquisition of four companies should not have
a negative impact on the company, McLean said.
"I
think what they're doing is taking advantage of the
marketplace and they have the strength in their balance
sheet to do it," he said.
McLean
pointed out that Bionx is trading for just below the
$4.35 a share ConMed is paying to acquire it. That's
a bargain considering in 1997 and 1998, Bionx's stock
had been trading at almost $30 a share.
Last
week, ConMed announced it had purchased Jacksonville,
Fla.-based CORE Dynamics Inc. for $9 million in cash.
CORE's product line is being moved to Utica and will
result in 30 to 40 new manufacturing jobs locally. The
move should be completed within the next six months,
Shallish said.
ConMed
purchased ValMed Corp. of Portland, Ore. and Quebec-based
NorTex Medical Ltd. for $6 million in cash and stock
this past December.
"This
is a lot all at once," Shallish said. "But
we've been working on some of these for quite a while
and it just so happens they all came together at once.
But we'll continue to look for acquisitions, we see
it as a viable way to grow."
ABOUT
BIONX
Headquarters:
Blue Bell, Penn. Also has a manufacturing facility in
Tampere, Finland.
President
and CEO: Gerard S. Carlozzi.
Products:
Develops and manufactures self-reinforced, resorbable
polymer implants including screws, pins and meniscal
implants for use in a variety of orthopedic applications
including sports medicine and fracture fixation. Bionx
is best known for its Meniscus Arrow bioabsorbable implant
for repair of tears of the meniscus in the knee.
Revenue:
In 2002, Bionx had revenues of $13.6 million. Bionx
had revenues of $18.6 million for 2001.
Employees:
About 150.
CONMED'S
RECENT ACQUISITIONS
January
2003: CORE Dynamics in Jacksonville, Fla.
December
2002: ValMed Corp. in Portland, Ore.; Nortex Medical
Ltd. in Quebec.
July
2001: Completes acquisition of Imagyn Medical Technologies.
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