Roche is buying GenMark Diagnostics for $1.8 billion

Roche is buying Genmark Diagnostics for $1.8 billion or €1.5 billion, and this was revealed on Monday, March 15. The price is for the full acquisition of the US-based molecular diagnostic tests maker.

The numbers in Roche’s newest investment

Roche’s price offer is equivalent to the price of $24.05 per share in an all-cash deal. This also showed a premium of 43% on GenMark’s closing stock on Feb. 10, just before the speculations about Roche’s plans to purchase GenMark made rounds, as per CNBC.

The Swiss pharmaceuticals manufacturer company decided to buy the leading provider of multiplex molecular diagnostic solutions so it can expand the business and make its presence in the diagnostics sector.

“Acquiring GenMark Diagnostics will broaden our molecular diagnostics portfolio to include solutions that can provide lifesaving information quickly to patients and their healthcare providers in the fight against infectious diseases,” Thomas Schinecker, Roche’s chief executive officer, said via press release.

It was added that the acquisition that was approved by the respective board of directors of Roche and GenMark Diagnostics is expected to be completed within the second quarter of 2021. Once the negotiations are done, the latter’s main operations will not be moved but will continue in its current office location in Carlsbad, California.

The setup in the merger deal

The terms in the merger agreement were partly disclosed, and one clause states that Roche will immediately and directly initiate a tender offer to purchase all outstanding stocks of GenMark’s shares.

At any rate, GenMark’s portfolio will complement and further enhance Roche’s molecular diagnostics portfolio. It is also expected that the Swiss company will widen its global network reach when it starts to distribute GenMark’s items and products.

“As a part of Roche, we can accelerate our mission to enable rapid diagnosis of infectious disease to improve patient outcomes,” CEO of GenMark Diagnostics, Scott Mendel, said. “Together with Roche’s diagnostics healthcare solutions, we will be able to provide a full suite of molecular diagnostic solutions to customers around the world.”

Finally, Mendel added that GenMark is thrilled to become part of the globally known Roche. He is confident that they made the right decision to move forward with the Swiss firm.