Italian diagnostics firm DiaSorin has signed an agreement to acquire Focus Diagnostics' immunoassay and molecular diagnostics products business from Quest Diagnostics for $300 million in cash.
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Under the deal, DiaSorin would acquire all of the tangible and intangible assets of Focus that are used to develop, manufacture, and distribute molecular diagnostics and immunoassay ELISA products, including intellectual property, contracts, and customer lists.
The transaction does not include Quest's diagnostic information service laboratories currently operating under the Focus Diagnostics brand
"This transaction reflects our ongoing commitment to refocusing on Quest's core diagnostic information services business," Quest President and CEO Steve Rusckowski said in a statement.
"We return the majority of our free cash flow to investors in the form of dividends and share repurchases, and also have been investing in the business through strategically aligned acquisitions."
For DiaSorin, the deal represents its latest effort to expand its presence in the molecular diagnostics space, which began in late 2012 when it launched an isothermal amplification-based genetic analysis system and two associated assays for BK virus and varicella-zoster virus.
By acquiring Focus, DiaSorin will pick up a suite of products already cleared for sale in the US and Europe including the Simplexa line of assays for C. difficile, influenza, respiratory syncytial virus, herpes, and strep infections, as well as the HerpeSelect serology test for herpes and the DxSelect line of IFA and ELISA assays.
DiaSorin said it expects to continue manufacturing Focus products from its base facility in Cypress, California with the roughly 180 employees currently employed there in manufacturing, research and development, sales and marketing, and administration.
The acquisition will also give DiaSorin a boost as it works to grow its footprint in the US, where it said it hopes to eventually generate 50 percent of its total sales. In 2015, Focus' product business generated approximately $80 million in revenues, about 80 percent of which were from sales to US-based customers.
The acquisition is expected to be completed in the second quarter through a newly created DiaSorin U.S. affiliate. Additional terms were not disclosed. ■