Integra LifeSciences (NSDQ:IART) is gearing up for the spinout of its spinal implant business, SeaSpine, which is slated for the 2nd half of 2015.
Plainsboro, N.J.-based Integra said yesterday that it filed the initial registration form for the spinout with the SEC, detailing its expectations for the deal.
Last November Integra revealed its plan to shed the spine business, saying it planned for SeaSpine to become a stand-alone, publicly traded company to focus on its surgical solutions, orthopedics and tissue technology businesses.
Integra acquired Vista, Calif.-based SeaSpine for $89 million in 2011, doubling its distribution footprint and customer base in the U.S. spine market. SeaSpine co-founder and former CEO Kirt Stephenson is in line to be named chairman of the company’s latest iteration.
A search for a new CEO is under way, Stephenson said yesterday.
"We believe that an independent SeaSpine will focus its investments on research and development and sales and marketing to drive faster growth. Similarly, the separation will result in faster growth for the remaining Integra businesses, Specialty Surgical Solutions and Orthopedics and Tissue Technologies," Integra president & CEO Peter Arduini said in prepared remarks.
"The SeaSpine team is energized about the opportunity to operate as a separate, publicly traded company," Stephenson added. "The prospects of returning SeaSpine to a growth trajectory are compelling. We are in the final stages of recruiting a strong leader to be the chief executive officer, and we have an experienced management team in place. SeaSpine will embark as an independent company with a leading orthobiologics portfolio, a broad spinal fusion hardware portfolio, and a pipeline of differentiated hardware products."
