Medtronic, Johnson & Johnson park billions in offshore accounts
June 6, 2014 by Arezu Sarvestani
There are no awards handed out for companies with the most money housed in overseas accounts, but keeping cash in tax havens is its own reward for at least a dozen top medical device makers, according to a new study.
Industry titans such as Medtronic, Johnson & Johnson, Boston Scientific and St. Jude Medical have billions in cash stored in overseas subsidiaries in countries such as Bermuda, the British Virgin Islands and the Cayman Islands, where corporate tax rates are famously low or even non-existent. Read more
Philips, Teva ink Israeli medtech incubator JV
June 9, 2014 by Brad Perriello
Philips and Teva Pharmaceuticals are teaming up on a medical device and drug development incubator in Israel, according to a newspaper there.
The companies submitted a joint bid to run the incubator and started a JV for it called Inspire Healthcare Innovations, according to Globes. The program is run under the auspices of Israel’s chief scientist’s office, according to the report. Read more
Allergan board members unanimously reject Valeant's $53B offer
June 10, 2014 by Arezu Sarvestani
Aesthetic devices giant Allergan roundly rejected the latest unsolicited acquisition offer from Valeant Pharmaceuticals and activist investor William Ackman, saying the increased $53.3 billion bid still undervalues the company.
Allergan’s board of directors unanimously voted to reject the proposal, as most analysts and observers had expected. The company has been swatting back Valeant’s attempts for weeks, starting with the initial $47 billion bid made in April. Valeant has twice sweetened the pot and attempted to take its offer directly to shareholders in a vote aimed at unseating Allergan’s directors. Read more
Convicted ex-Heart Tronics CEO won't get a retrial, judge rules
June 11, 2014 by Arezu Sarvestani
A California District Judge harshly refused former Signalife and Heart Tronics CEO Mitchell Stein’s motion for a retrial, taking offense to the request itself.
Stein was convicted in May 2013 of 14 charges of fraudulently inflating share prices for heart monitoring devices maker Signalife (later Heart Tronics). Federal prosecutors called for a $5.4 million fine to account for Stein’s ill-gotten gains as well as those of his former chauffeur and co-conspirator. Read more
