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Hospital Deals Lag 2015’s Total

Hospital transactions have trickled in during the first three quarters of 2016. To date, 68 mergers or acquisitions have been announced (64 of them for U.S. hospital or health systems), although there have been many more partnerships, strategic alliances and joint ventures in the same period. For our database, those deals don’t count. Last year at this time, 79 deals were recorded, and 2015 ended with a total of 102 transactions (96 of them U.S.-based targets). Given the slowing pace of M&A activity we’ve witnessed since the second quarter, we don’t expect a sudden burst of transactions in the fourth quarter that would reach last year’s level. Spending on the... Read More »

Digital Health Deals on Track to Pass 2015

So far in 2016, eHealth is only four deals away from surpassing 2015’s total of 126, and nearly $20 billion has been spent (out of 20 disclosed prices). Nine deals have been announced in September, most of which exemplify how eHealth touches many areas of healthcare, beyond the expected revenue cycle management (RCM), electronic health records (EHR) etc. On September 15, 2016, privately-held RightEye LLC, a provider of eye-tracking technology that captures and scores eye movements and helps to predict, evaluate and improve outcomes of its users, purchased rights to two eye movement tests from the University of California, San Diego, and Virginia Commonwealth University. The GeoPref Autism... Read More »

Medical Device Sector Picks Up in Q3:16

In the first eight months of 2016, 80 transactions were announced in the Medical Device sector, making it unlikely this year’s deal volume would surpass last year’s total of 114 deals. As the third quarter wraps up, the sector’s deal volume has reached 90 deals: 31 in Q1, 27 in Q2, and 32 as of September 27th in Q3. If that deal making pace continues through Q4, at 2016’s average rate of 30 deals a quarter, we’ll see a 5% increase in deal volume since last year. September’s medical device deals include interventional device maker Boston Scientific Corporation (NYSE: BSX), which acquired EndoChoice Holdings Inc. (NYSE: GI), maker of endoscopic imaging systems, devices and infection control... Read More »

MACRA Is Spooking Physician Medical Groups

With a full quarter left to go in 2016, mergers and acquisitions in the Physician Medical Group sector have caught up to last year’s total number of transactions. In 2015, 89 deals were announced. Through September 26, 2016, the sector’s deal volume has reached 88. One factor contributing to the increase in activity is the Medicare Access and CHIP Reauthorization Act (MACRA) passed in April 2015. The bipartisan bill took aim at physician practices treating Medicare Part B patients, and awarded those that went with a value-based reimbursement schedule versus those that stayed with the fee-for-service model. The true impetus, however, came from the aggressive implementation... Read More »

Preliminary Data: Q3 M and A

There’s still one week left to go in the month of September, and the third quarter, but the trends have already established themselves. Merger and acquisition activity in health care dropped 20% compared with the previous quarter, down to 331 deals compared with 415 in Q2:16. The third quarter also pales in comparison to the same quarter a year earlier, when 411 deals were posted (-19%). Even with a week to go, it’s obvious that deal making has slowed considerably and likely won’t recover to those levels. Spending was also much lower than in the previous quarter, and the year-ago period. At the moment, $45.9 billion is on the books for Q3:16, down 48% compared with... Read More »

Allergan Is Bullish on Biotech

Ever since Allergan (NYSE: AGN) completed the $40.5 billion sale of its generics business to Teva Pharmaceutical Industries (NYSE: TEVA) on August 2, the pharma giant is targeting biotech companies with a vengeance. In September alone (and we’re only talking about three weeks at this point), the company has announced four deals, totalling $1.28 billion. Year-to-date, Allergan has announced nine transactions for a total of $1.67 billion, more than Pfizer’s (NYSE: PFE) seven deals but far behind the $19.8 billion Pfizer committed to those transactions. (Pfizer’s biggest deal this year, the $13.5 billion acquisition of Medivation (NASDAQ: MDVN), was announced in August.)... Read More »

Allergan Adds Tobira to Its GI Pipeline

Allergan plc (NYSE: AGN) shows no signs of slowing its acquisition pace this year, and just solidified its lead in therapeutics for nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH), an incurable disease affecting approximately 5% of the U.S. population. The pharma giant announced its acquisition of Tobira Therapeutics Inc. (NASDAQ: TBRA), This transaction marks the company’s eighth in 2016, and $1.63 billion spent in upfront payments alone since January. Tobira came with an upfront purchase price of $533.6 million, or $28.35 per share, and up to $49.84 per share in Contingent Value Rights that may be payable based on the successful completion of certain milestones, for a total consideration of up to... Read More »

Horizon Pharma Buys Raptor

For the week ending September 16, 2016, a combined $1.01 billion was spent on three pharmaceutical deals, one of which is also the largest pharmaceutical deal so far in September. Horizon Pharma plc (NASDAQ: HZNP), which develops, acquires and commercializes medicines for the treatment of arthritis, pain, inflammatory and/or orphan diseases, acquired Raptor Pharmaceuticals Corp. (NASDAQ: RPTP) for approximately $800 million, or $9.00 per share. Raptor focuses on developing and commercializing transformative treatments for people affected by rare and debilitating diseases. The transaction gives Horizon global rights to PROCYSBI® delayed-release capsules, used to treat nephropathic... Read More »