Becton Dickinson (NYSE:BDX) has inked an agreement with C. R. Bard (NYSE:BCR) to acquire the medtech company for $317.00 per Bard common share in cash and stock, valuing the deal at $24 billion.
In announcing the deal yesterday, Franklin Lakes, N.J.-based BD said it plans to create a new segment within the company, BD Interventional, to incorporate Bard’s businesses. BD also named Tom Polen as president of BD, effective immediately. Polen, who previously served as the executive VP and president of the company’s medical segment, will oversee the new interventional arm of the company.
Both BD and Bard officials touted the benefits of the proposed merger, though analysts at S&P said they expected to lower BD’s corporate credit rating over the deal. BD’s stock was down more than 4% near the end of trading today, while Bard’s stock was up about 20% amid 1st quarter results that beat analysts’s expections.
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