Covidien Still Hungry For GI After Barrx Buy

Two years ago, Covidien PLC entered the vascular market with the acquisition of VNUS Medical Technologies Inc., [See Deal] a publicly held maker of devices to treat venous reflux disease. Covidien paired the company with the smaller purchase of Bacchus Vascular Inc., [See Deal] housing both in a new global business unit focused on the area. (See A#2009800084].) The acquisition of VNUS for $470 million represented a modest first step and positioned Covidien to take its next leap, the $2.5 billion acquisition of vascular company ev3 Inc. in 2010. [See Deal] Together, the vascular business brought in $1.4 billion in sales in 2011, a 76% jump over the previous year’s business. (See Also see "Covidien Runs Familiar But Different Plays to Build Vascular Franchise" - In Vivo, 1 June, 2010..)

Covidien appears to be repeating history, this time in the gastrointestinal disease space. Just as it did with VNUS, Covidien snapped up a smaller leader in a field where it had very little contact – esophageal cancer and its precursor Barrett’s esophagus – with the intent of building a larger presence. Covidien paid $325 million for Barrx Medical Inc