By Ron Shinkman, Editor, Laboratory Industry Report
Opko Health, Inc., the Miami-based molecular lab, has come to an agreement to acquire Bio-Reference Laboratory for $1.47 billion in a stock swap deal.
Opko will pay the equivalent of $52.58 per share for Bio-Reference, which is a more than 60 percent premium over its closing price on June 3, the day before the deal was announced. Bio-Reference shareholders will receive 2.75 shares of Opko stock for every share of their stock.
The Elmwood Park, N.J.-based Bio-Reference is one of the largest independent laboratories in the United States. Opko said it would use that company’s existing sales and marketing infrastructure to push sales of its 4Kscore test to determine the aggressiveness of individual prostate cancer, as well as other products that are currently under development.
Bio-Reference has two specialty divisions, GeneDx, which focuses on genetic sequencing, and GenPath Diagnostics, which focuses on oncology and women’s health. Its fiscal 2014 revenue topped $832 million.
"I have long admired Bio-Reference Laboratories which, for almost 30 years, has enjoyed an impressive record of organic growth through constant innovation and clinical awareness," said Phillip Frost, M.D., Opko’s chief executive officer, in a statement. "Bio-Reference Laboratories is a true success story that has culminated in cutting-edge diagnostic solutions accompanied by a worldwide franchise in the diagnosis of rare diseases.”
The deal is expected to close during the second half of 2015, both companies said.
More thorough coverage of the transaction will appear in the late June edition of Laboratory Industry Report.