Baxter to spend up to $330M on privately held British orthobiologic company

Baxter to spend up to $330M on British company

DEERFIELD, Ill. — Specialty drug and medical device maker Baxter International Inc. said Monday it will spend up to $330 million to acquire ApaTech, a privately held British concern that makes bone and soft tissue replacement material using biochemistry.

Baxter said it will pay $240 million cash for the orthobiologic products company and then pay up to $90 million more when sales milestones are reached. The deal is expected to close in the first quarter.

The acquisition will give Baxter a bone graft material called Actifuse marketed in the United States and Europe. The Deerfield, Ill., company also will acquire U.S., British and German manufacturing and research sites.

Baxter called ApaTech’s product pipeline “highly complementary to our existing commercial and technical capabilities in biosurgery.”

Baxter shares rose 33 cents to $57.26 in late morning trading Monday.