Venture capitalists put more cash into fewer deals backing medical device companies last year, according to the MoneyTree report, meaning that the average deal value rose nearly 28% in 2014.
The report, compiled by PricewaterhouseCoopers and the National Venture Capital Assn. using data from Thomson Reuters, found that VC shops spent $2.66 billion on 319 medtech firms. That’s an increase in total value of 27.0% over 2013, but a -0.6% decline in deal volume.
During the 4th quarter there were 90 deals worth a collective $748.4 million, according to the report, representing a 58.6% increase in value despite a -10.9% volume decline compared with Q4 2013. On a sequential quarter basis, the total deal value rose 20.6%; VC deal volume grew 9.8% compared with the 3rd quarter, according to the report.
The average VC investment in medtech was about $8.3 million in 2014, up 27.8% compared with the $6.5 million average reported for the prior year.
The results dovetail with a report released last week by New York-based research firm CB Insights, which found that medtech deals garnered 34% of all VC investment in healthcare last year.
Here’s a look at the total value of the medical device & equipment spend by venture capital firms from 1995 to 2014, according to the MoneyTree report:
And here’s a look at the total number of medical device & equipment deals inked by venture capital firms from 1995 to 2014, according to the MoneyTree report: