More deals ahead for Covidien?

As Covidien (NYSE:COV) closed its 4th recent acquisition, analysts speculated that there may be more deals on the near future.

The Mansfield, Mass.-based company may be looking to pick up some assets in hypertension treatment, or may keep its sights on additional acquisitions in Israel.

A report by MedCity News speculated that Covidien’s support for Maya Medical’s renal denervation systems may soon lead to a buyout.

An unnamed investor told Israel’s Globes business news that Covidien will likely be on the lookout for "activities in their existing areas or areas in which their major competitors are not operating."

That may include pulmonary devices, anesthetics intensive care and monitoring, the investor added.

Covidien picked up 3 Israeli device makers on its recent shopping spree. The company spent spent $300 million for patient monitoring device maker Oridion (SWF:ORIDN), $300 million plus possible earnouts for superDimension and an undisclosed amount for hernia mesh maker PolyTouch Medical Ltd.

Covidien this week also closed the $108 million acquisition of Newport Medical Instruments, a deal initially announced in March.

Regulatory, economic uncertainty driving slowdown in hospital capital spending, analysis says
A decreasing percentage of survey respondents reported that their hospital capital budgets had increased or remained flat for 2012, with most attributing the cuts to reductions in reimbursement and debt concerns, according to a survey conducted by the group purchasing organization Premier Healthcare Alliance.
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Medic Vision, BRIT Systems sign U.S. deal for SafeCT
Texas-based BRIT Systems signed a deal to support U.S. sales of Israel-based Medic Vision Imaging Solutions’ SafeCT image enhancement system. Read more

ConvaTec buys AbViser Medical for an undisclosed amount
Skillman, N.J.-based ConvaTec acquired AbViser Medical LLC, maker of the AbViser intra-abdominal pressure monitoring system. The terms of the deal were not make public. Read more

Corpak acquires Micronix’s assets
Buffalo Grove, Ill.-based Corpak picked up all the intellectual property and other assets of Micronix for an undisclosed amount. Read more

Synexus nabs Osteomed, terms not disclosed
Manchester, U.K.-based Synexus purchased Poland’s Osteomed for an undisclosed amount. Read more

HCL Technologies and Becton Dickinson join forces for R&D

Indian HCL Technologies announced an engineering and R&D partnership with Becton Dickinson & Co. (NYSE:BDX). The terms of the deal were not made public. Read more

EndoEvolution licenses MIS suturing device to Edwards Lifesciences’

Chelmsford, Mass.-based EndoEvolution signed an exclusive worldwide agreement to license its Endo360 deg MIS suturing device to Edwards Lifesciences’ (NYSE:EW) for cardiac-related applications only. Read more

Teleflex hits 52-week high
Teleflex (NYSE:TFX) notched a new 52-week high yesterday, opening at $64.79 per share before closing at $63.66. Shares jumped after the medical device maker revealed a pair of acquisitions and earnings well above Wall Street’s expectations.

GPOs: Novation touts new distribution agreements
Group purchasing organization Novation signed distribution agreements with a clutch of companies, including Cardinal Health, Medline Industries and Owens & Minor Distribution, as well as to several regional distributors. Read more

Funding Roundup

Analysts’ ups and downs

Becton Dickinson & Co. (NYSE:BDX): Deutsche cuts price target from $82 to $81 on low organic growth
Biogen Idec (NSDQ:BIIB): Jeffries raises price target from $137 to $154
Edwards Lifesciences (NYSE:EW): Goldman Sachs maintains "buy" rating, raises price target from $90 to $97; Wells Fargo upgrades to "outperform" rating on Sapien sales and reimbursement outlook; Cannacord Genuity maintains "buy" rating, raises price target fro $86 to $93; Leerink Swann maintain "outperform" rating and $90 price target
Haemonetics (NYSE:HAE): Morgan Stanley raises to "equal weight" rating, maintains $55 price target
Hologic (NSDQ:HOLX): Cantor Fitzgerald maintains "hold" rating, boost price target from $18 to $20
Hospira (NYSE:HSP): Leerink Swann hand down "market perform" rating, $36 price target
Medidata NSDQ:MDSO): Jeffries maintains "buy" rating, increases price target from $31 to $34
NuVasive Inc. (NSDQ:NUVA): Baird ups rating to "outperform," raises price target from $18 to $24; William Blair lifts rating to "outperform"; Cannacord Genuity maintains "buy" rating, increases price target from $21 to $27
Solta Medical (NSDQ:SLTM): Leerink Swann hands down "outperform" rating, raises price target from $4.12 to $4.95
Spectranetics (NSDQ:SPNC): Barrington Research maintains an "outperform" rating and $13 price target
Teleflex (NYSE:TFX): Jeffries raises price target to $64, maintains "hold" rating; Leerink Swann maintains "market perform" rating
Thoratec (NSDQ:THOR): Oppenheimer & Co. maintains "outperform rating," raises price target from $40 to $42; Leerink Swann maintains "outperform" rating and $45 price target
Wright Medical (NSDQ:WMGI): Jeffries raises price target to to $19, upgrades to "hold" rating