Johnson & Johnson (J&J) is allegedly looking to strengthen its presence in the cardiovascular device market with the acquisition of medical device company Shockwave Medical, as first reported by the Wall Street Journal (WSJ) on 26 March.
The WSJ cited people familiar with the matter who claimed that a finalised deal could be around the corner pending successful acquisition talks. However, the report also noted that another suitor could emerge to merge with Santa Clara, a California-based medical device manufacturer. WSJ did not mention the valuation of the potential acquisition.
This is not the first time Shockwave has been involved in acquisition rumours, as Bloomberg reported that Boston Scientific was eyeing Shockwave for a takeover in April 2023.
Since the publication of the WSJ report, Shockwave’s stock price has increased by 3.8%. Shockwave has a market cap of $12.3bn.
As per a 15 February press release, Shockwave has commenced the US commercial launch of its Shockwave C²⁺ coronary intravascular lithotripsy (IVL) catheter, which is intended for the treatment of severely calcified coronary artery disease. The product was also launched in select international markets in May 2023.
J&J has been ramping up activity in the cardiovascular space. In December 2023, J&J MedTech made a $400m purchase for heart implant company Laminar. With the acquisition, the company gained access to an innovative investigative device that is under development to eliminate left atrial appendage (LAA) in patients with non-valvular atrial fibrillation.
On 25 March, J&J gained US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approval for its single-tablet formulation of endothelin receptor antagonist (ERA) macitentan and phosphodiesterase 5 (PDE5) inhibitor, Opseynvi (macitentan + tadalafil), for the chronic treatment of adults with pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH), World Health Organization Group I and WHO functional classes II and III.
GlobalData’s consensus forecasts estimate that the drug will yield sales of $465m in 2029.
GlobalData is the parent company of Pharmaceutical Technology.
