Dive Brief:
- Merit Medical Systems has acquired View Point Medical in a $140 million deal to expand its oncology portfolio.
- View Point sells a system for tumor tissue localization in biopsies and cancer resection surgeries. Merit already has a tissue localization device, but it has a different mechanism.
- The deal, which Merit disclosed Wednesday, is worth $90 million upfront. Merit will pay another $50 million split across two payments on the first and second anniversaries of the takeover.
Dive Insight:
View Point markets the OneMark Detection Imaging System and OneMark Tissue Markers. Physicians place the devices, which are cleared by the Food and Drug Administration, during biopsies and visualize them using ultrasound. Merit predicted the products will add $14 million to $16 million to its sales next year.
The OneMark products join a portfolio that already includes a tumor tissue localization device. Merit’s Scout platform uses an external probe to generate tissue depth data and works without ultrasound.
Needham analysts said in a note to investors that they believe it would be rare for physicians to use OneMark and Scout in the same patient. The analysts said the buyout offers an additional, wire-free option for surgeons to locate breast cancer tissue, adding that OneMark may be preferred in settings with readily available ultrasound imaging systems.
Buying View Point makes sense, adds a new growth driver and is consistent with Merit’s focus on tuck-in acquisitions of complementary products, the analysts said. On an earnings call in February, Merit CEO Martha Aronson said the company is organized around platforms that inform its M&A strategy.
Merit wants the cross-functional and cross-geographic teams that oversee the platforms to share their acquisition wish lists, Aronson said. The company evaluates the takeover targets against strategic and financial criteria, considering factors such as whether a deal “could fill a [sales] rep’s bag out even more fully,” the CEO added.
View Point extends a series of acquisitions by Merit. In 2024, the company struck deals to buy EndoGastric Solutions for $105 million and Cook Medical’s lead management portfolio for about $210 million. Last year, Merit paid $120 million for Biolife and bought the C2 CryoBalloon line from Pentax Medical.
