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By Deena Beasley
Oct 5 (Reuters) - Medical equipment supplier BectonDickinson & Co has agreed to buy CareFusion Corp, a maker of infusion pumps and other medical devices,for $12.2 billion in cash and stock, marking the latestmultibillion-dollar healthcare sector deal.
Becton said on Sunday it would pay a total of $58.00 a share- $49.00 in cash and 0.0777 of a share of Becton Dickinson - foreach share of CareFusion, representing a premium of 26 percentto the closing price on Oct. 3.
The acquisition, recommended by the boards of bothcompanies, is aimed at combining the two U.S.-based companies'complementary products for preparing, administering andmonitoring patient medications while also extending theirgeographical reach.
BD makes products to deliver and administer drugs, likedisposable needles, syringes and IV (intravenous) catheters,while CareFusion makes products to store the drugs and todeliver them, such as infusion pumps.
A combined company "could improve patient safety plus reducecosts at the same time," said Vincent Forlenza, BectonDickinson's chairman, chief executive officer and president in atelephone interview.
Cost-related healthcare reforms, including those mandatedunder President Barack Obama's Affordable Care Act, have spurredconsolidation for U.S. health systems and hospitals, the maincustomer for both Becton Dickinson and CareFusion.
"This is an industry that from a customer perspective isconsolidating," said Kieran Gallahue, CareFusion's chairman andCEO. "Healthcare systems around the globe are looking forcompanies that can bring greater scale to them - it is a way todrive down costs while improving safety at the same time."
Forlenza said Becton's geographic reach - around 60 percentof its sales are outside of the United States and 25 percent ofsales are in emerging markets - offers a strong platform forproducts from CareFusion, which currently relies on the domesticmarket for 75 percent of its revenue.
Becton said the transaction is expected to providedouble-digit earnings growth, on an adjusted basis, in the firstfull year, and will be accretive to net earnings in fiscal year2018.
The deal, subject to regulatory and CareFusion shareholderapprovals and customary closing conditions, is expected to closein the first half of next year.
At closing, the companies said Becton Dickinson shareholderswill own around 92 percent of the combined company andCareFusion shareholders will own around 8 percent.
Healthcare companies have been merging at a record pace,with year-to-date activity topping $346 billion, compared to$212 billion in the year-ago period, Thomson Reuters data showed as of September.
Recent large deals have included AbbVie Inc's planned $54 billion acquisition of Shire Plc andMedtronic Inc's planned acquisition of Covidien Plc for $43 billion. AstraZeneca Plc, meanwhile,fended off a $118 billion takeover attempt by Pfizer Inc. (Reporting By Deena Beasley; Editing by Chizu Nomiyama)
