Stryker picked up controlling interest in Vexim, a French medical device company that specializes in the minimally invasive treatment of vertebral fractures.
Medtech company Stryker Corporation picked up controlling interest in Vexim, a French medical device company that specializes in the minimally invasive treatment of vertebral fractures.
In an announcement this morning, Stryker said it “indirectly acquired” more than four million shares of Vexim stock, valued at €183 million, which gave the company a little more than 50 percent of voting rights in the company. Stryker said the shares it acquired were valued at €20 each from shareholder funds managed by Truffle Capital, Bpifrance and Kreaxi, as well as managers of Vexim.
Stryker said Vexim’s portfolio of products is complementary to its own Interventional Spine (IVS) business, which includes products used for vertebral augmentation, vertebroplasty and radiofrequency ablation procedures, along with a diagnostic tool and decompression treatment advances for contained disc herniations. Vexim’s flagship product is the SpineJack system, a mechanical expandable VCF implant for fracture reduction and stabilization. Vexim is seeking clearance to sell the SpineJack System in the United States. The company anticipates filing for clearance in 2018.
Vexim has a direct sales force in Europe with sales in France, Germany, Spain, and Italy. Additionally, the company has an international distribution network in selected countries in Eastern Europe, the Middle East, Latin America and Asia.
Vexim Chief Executive Officer Vincent Gardes praised the deal and said in a statement he was enthusiastic about Vexim being folded into Stryker’s spine business.
“Stryker will significantly help us achieve our objective to become a global spine trauma leader, through consolidation of our European presence and expansion of our international footprint. We will benefit from Stryker’s broad customer base and commercial platform in back trauma surgery, enabling further acceleration in the adoption of the SpineJack technology,” Gardes said.
Gardes said Vexim’s clinical trial required for FDA approval of its SpineJack System is “progressing well” and anticipates regulatory filing in 2018. The SpineJack System is designed to restore a fractured vertebra to its original shape and restore the spinal column’s “optimal anatomy.” By doing so, patients who undergo treatment will no longer be in pain and will be able to recover their functional capabilities
Vexim had sales of €18.5 million ($21.84 million) in 2016, which was 33 percent growth over 2015 revenue, Stryker said in its announcement.
The transaction is expected to close in the fourth quarter of 2017 and is expected to be neutral to Stryker’s 2017 adjusted net earnings per diluted share.
Shares of Stryker Corp. stock are down slightly this morning, trading at $148.44 as of 11:07 a.m.
