Dentsply International is reportedly on the verge of paying $1.8 billion to acquire Astra Tech, the dental implant arm of AstraZeneca, according to a story in the Financial Times and other news reports.
The deal has attracted a plethora of bidders in recent months, including Straumann, Nobel Biocare, Zimmer, Biomet, Danaher, and several private equity firms. Earlier this month Straumann and Nobel Biocare both bowed out, and now Dentsply appears to have outbid the other potential buyers, according to the Financial Times.
Astra Tech had revenues of $535 million in 2010 and is the world's third-largest maker of dental implants after Straumann and Nobel Biocare. The company is based in Mölndal, Sweden, and has 2,200 employees. In addition to dental implants, Astra Tech also produces urological and surgery devices such as catheters and breathing aids.
Dentsply is one of the largest dental products suppliers in the world, with operations in 40 countries and distribution in more than 120 countries. The company reported revenues of $266 million on sales of $2.2 billion in 2010.
"By our math, such a deal would give XRAY [Dentsply's trading symbol] an estimated 21% share of a $3+ billion worldwide dental implant market, roughly in line with the market shares of current leaders Nobel Biocare (~21%) and Straumann (~20%)," noted Jeff Johnson, an analyst with Robert W. Baird, in a market brief issued June 20. "Given a relatively fragmented dental implant market, we wouldn't expect significant regulatory issues with such a deal, especially in the U.S., although we'd need additional details on overlap in several European markets."
AstraZeneca told the Financial Times that a decision on Astra Tech is "imminent" but declined to comment further. Reuters reported that an announcement could come as soon as this week.
As of press time, Dentsply had not responded to a request for comment.
