Guidant

Boston Scientific's surprise bid for Guidant triggered rumors on Wall Street of further consolidation in the medical device market. Shares of St. Jude Medical rose about 5 percent on speculation that the company could be the object of a takeover bid by another company. Most analysts are ruling out market leader Medtronic as a target, arguing that the company would be too expensive. "This is one of the hottest areas of medical technology and will be for several years," comments Phillip …

Boston Scientific offered to pay about $25 billion for rival device maker Guidant, topping an earlier bid by Johnson & Johnson by nearly $3 billion. Boston Scientific Chairman Pete Nicholas said his company is interested in its competitor's defibrillator and pacemaker lines. The deal would create a medical device superpower, uniting two dominant powers in the medical device industry. Nicholas acknowledged that Boston Scientific would probably have to sell off Guidant's stent business …

Remote monitoring of implantable devices like defibrillators is slowly becoming mainstream. An article in the Chicago Tribune examines devices from Biotronik and Guidant which use wireless technology to report in every night from the patient's home. One outcome in these days of recalls is that any possible defect in devices can be monitored immediately. Dr. Niraj Varma, director of the electrophysiology lab at Loyola University Health System in Maywood, IL, notes: "If you have …

Could Medtronic become the next Guidant? The medical device maker warned Tuesday of a defect that could cause wires its Sigma brand pacemakers to separate from their circuits. Article

Guidant said it will settle a lawsuit filed by the family of Joshua Oukrop, a 21-year-old Minnesota man who died after his defibrillator failed. The terms of the settlement were not disclosed. The Oukrop story, first reported by The New York Times, led to a series of major recalls and a formal investigation by federal authorities. The device maker has since restructured its merger with Johnson & Johnson at a marked down price. Guidant said it faces about 45 similar …

Drug giant Johnson & Johnson announced this morning that it has reached an agreement with Guidant which will allow the two companies to complete their merger. Under the new terms, J&J will pay $21.5 billion for the Indianapolis-based device maker. Previously J&J threatened to break off the deal completely, arguing that a series of recalls had an "adverse material impact on the company's value." The new deal values Guidant at $63.08 per share, a price closer to what J&J had …

Guidant released a 153-page report containing detailed information about its defibrillator and pacemaker lines in an attempt to restore confidence in its products. The data appears to back the company's argument that faulty leads, not defibrillators or pacemakers, were to blame for some recent problems. The report also includes additional specifics about device failures and outcomes, details which the company has refused to reveal in the past. Some cardiologists welcomed the move. …

The other big story of the day remains the news that Johnson & Johnson may walk away from its $25.4 billion deal with heart device maker Guidant, a merger that many healthcare analysts had expected to transform the industry. Is Johnson & Johnson's talk about abandoning the deal for real? One observer likens the situation to "a high stakes game of chicken." J&J reportedly wants to renegotiate a share price in the "low to mid sixties." Guidant is arguing that the …

Healthcare giant Johnson & Johnson announced that it may not complete its $23.4 billion purchase of Guidant, saying the company's recent problems have had an "adverse impact" on its value and that its negotiations with Guidant have not been productive. The news came on the same day that the FTC announced its approval for the original deal. A complete abandonment of the transaction would be something of a surprise; many analysts had speculated that J&J wanted to renegotiate its price.

- see this article from the Associated Press

Guidant said it plans to regularly release data on its pacemakers and defibrillators in an effort to address safety concerns. The Indianapolis-based device maker has been the focus of attention since reports earlier this year that it failed to inform regulators about problems with its popular Ventak Prizm and Contak Renewal implants. This week, the company announced it is the subject of a Department of Justice probe into the circumstances surrounding its recall of both models. Over the …