Wright Medical (NSDQ:WMGI) and Tornier (NSDQ:TRNX) yesterday said they scheduled a set of meetings so their shareholders can vote on the pending, $3.3 billion "merger of equals" between the 2 orthopedic device makers.
The meetings are slated for June 18, the companies said, at Wright’s Memphis headquarters and in Amsterdam, Holland, where Tornier is based. The Dutch company said it also plans to hold its annual shareholders meeting that day.
Wright has predicted a 2nd-half closing for the union, contingent on the sale of some Tornier assets to satisfy the U.S. Federal Trade Commission.
"Tornier has been actively pursuing divestiture of the Tornier lower extremity products cited in FTC’s 2nd request, which are the Tornier Salto Talaris and Salto XT ankle replacement products and the Tornier silastic toe replacement products," Wright said in announcing its 1st-quarter results last month.
Wright said that although "an end-of-2nd-quarter 2015 closing is still possible, we continue to believe a third quarter close is more likely."
Wright’s 1st-quarter losses grew by more than 63%, to -$49.7 million, or -98¢ per share, on sales growth of 9.7% to $77.9 million for the 3 months ended 31. Adjusted to exclude 1-time items, earnings per share were -51¢, missing Wall Street’s forecast by 6¢ but beating analysts’ $74.9 million top-line expectations.
The company confirmed its outlook for the rest of the year, saying it still expects to report adjusted EPS of -$1.67 to -$1.77 on sales of $325 million to $335 million, representing constant-currency growth of 13% to 16%. The company said it plans to give updated guidance after the Tornier deal closes.
