Abbott (NYSE:ABT) said today it is looking to close its $5 billion acquisition of Alere (NYSE:ALR) tomorrow, saying it has received all regulatory clearances necessary.
The Abbott Park, Ill.-based company said the acquisition will establish it as a “global leader in point of care testing,” which it sees as the fastest growing segment of the $50 billion in vitro diagnostics market.
“Creating the world’s leading point of care business will help Abbott meet the growing demand for fast, accurate and actionable information. Combined with Abbott’s existing point of care business and its leading hand-held platform, i-STAT, we now have the broadest point of care testing portfolio to help improve care for patients in more parts of the world,” Abbott diagnostic products exec VP Brian Blaser said in a press release.
The transaction is set to clear after U.S. and Canadian anti-trust regulators approved the deal last week, subject to concessions.
Abbott agreed to divest a blood gas testing system to Siemens (NYSE:SI), which also agreed to buy two Alere facilities in Ottawa. Quidel (NSDQ:QDEL) Corp. is slated to buy Abbott’s heart function testing system business and an Alere facility in San Diego.
Abbott offered to acquire Alere in February 2016. After several snafus, the company finally agreed to purchase Alere for $5.3 billion – down from its initial $5.8 billion price tag. The deal is now slated to close Oct. 3, Abbott said.
