Smith and Nephew acquires US orthopaedics outfit

Medical technology outfit Smith and Nephew has agreed to acquire Ceterix Orthopaedics in a deal valued as much as $105m.

Smith and Nephew will pay an initial cash consideration of $50m for the NovoStitch developer, with a further $55m spread out over the next five years, contingent on the business' financial performance.

NovoStitch Pro, which allows surgeons to arthroscopically repair a broader range of meniscal tear types, will be sold through Smith and Nephew's "extensive sports medicine sales force", as well as via the company's existing US sales network.

The FTSE 100 constituent's president of sports medicine Brad Cannon, said: "NovoStitch Pro is an outstanding technology that addresses an unmet clinical need."

"We are excited by the opportunities to take this new option to our customers. No other company is better positioned to support changing clinical practice as the standard for meniscal treatment pivots from resection to repair."

"We are proud of the impact our technology has made in developing the meniscal repair market and are excited by the opportunity to reach many more customers and their patients as an integrated part of Smith & Nephew's extensive Sports Medicine portfolio," added John McCutcheon, chief executive of Ceterix.

As of 1700 GMT, Smith & Nephew shares had slid 2.18% to 1,435p.