Medtronic To Acquire CryoCath for $380 Million

Fridley, MI (AHN) - Medical gadget maker Medtronic Inc. announced Thursday its plan to buy CryoCath Technologies Inc. for $380 million or $8.45 per share to expand its heart-products portfolio.

According to the Memphis Business Journal, the proposed purchase represents a 97 percent premium to the Canadian firm's closing price on Sept. 24. The deal is expected to close before the end of the year.

CryoCath manufactures Arctic Front, a product that uses freezing to treat abnormal heart rhythms. Medtronic said the heart ailment affects up to five million patients globally.

Bloomberg reported that acquisition would give Medtronic entry into a market worth about $2 billion, according to analyst Rick Wise of Leerink Swan & Co. in New York.

CryoCath has Asante Partners as financial advisor and Davies Ward Phillips & Vineberg as legal counsel. Stikeman Elliott represent Medtronic.