Smiths Group shares jump after it gets ‘superior’ £1.75bn offer for medical unit
FTSE-100 tech company Smiths Group was among the biggest gainers today after it agreed to sell its medical unit to ICU Medical for around £1.75bn.
Smiths could also bank a $100m bonus from the deal, dependant on the ICU Medical’s future share price.
It led Smiths to recommend shareholders back the new “superior” offer instead of an agreed sale to US buyout firm TA Associates.
The tussle for the unit and the resulting topped up offer mean shares jumped more than four per cent at the open and have settled at around 1,465p, up 2.88 per cent currently.
Smiths Medical makes ventilators, syringe pumps and tracheostomy tubes for hospitals around the world.
The new cash-and-shares deal will also see Smiths receive a stake of around 10 per centin the merged ICU Medical group.