Bio-Techne Acquires Exosome Diagnostics in Deal Worth Up to $575M
Bio-Techne Corporation announced Tuesday its second acquisition of the month. The Minneapolis-based company reached a deal to acquire Exosome Diagnostics for $250 million in cash with a possibility of an additional $325 million received if “certain future milestones” are hit.
Bio-Techne primarily develops and manufactures purified proteins – including cytokine, antibodies and more – while the Waltham, Massachusetts-based Exosome Diagnostics sells a portfolio of diagnostic tests.
Exosome’s key market product at the moment is a urine-based test known as ExoDX Prostate (IntelliScore). The test helps physicians determine whether a patient with an unclear prostate blood test result needs to get a biopsy. Exosome has about 200 total patents on diagnostic technology for various pathologies, including prostate, bladder, kidney and breast cancers, among others.
“We are excited to acquire the Exosome Diagnostic technology platform and integrate it into the Bio-Techne portfolio. ExosomeDx's technology is a game changer, and positions Bio-Techne to be a leader in the rapidly-growing non-invasive liquid biopsy market,” said Charles R. Kummeth, president and CEO of Bio-Techne, in prepared remarks.
Kummeth added that Bio-Techne will tap into its strong market standing and apply its experience in commercializing biologicals to the “science of exosomes and cell-free DNA.”
For its part, Kummeth said Exosome Diagnostics fits with Bio-Techne’s growing molecular pathology business arm, and it enhances the company’s overall involvement in cancer medicine. With this acquisition, Bio-Techne now sells solutions for all stages: research, diagnostics and therapeutics.
The Exosome Diagnostics deal also marks Bio-Techne’s 14th acquisition within five years. One of its largest deals came in 2016 when Bio-Techne jumped into genomics with its $250 million acquisition of California-based Advanced Cell Diagnostics. Moreover, in the first week of June this year, Bio-Techne announced plans to buy Quad Technologies by acquiring all of its stock.
The string of acquisitions has lifted Bio-Techne’s annual revenue, which in its 2017 fiscal year increased 13 percent to $563 million.
As Kummeth sees the acquisition as a way to continue that growth for Bio-Techne, Exosome Diagnostics CEO John Boyce also acknowledged the deal’s benefit for Exosome.
“We believe we have found the perfect partner to take our technology to the next level,” he said in a statement. “Both companies share the vision to develop innovative tools that can revolutionize medicine and provide better care for patients. We are very pleased with this transaction and look forward to being part of a larger company with a global presence.”
The transaction will be financed through a combination of cash on hand and a revolving line of credit facility and is expected to close in July or August.
