C.R. Bard Inks Deal for Ireland-Based Provider of Catheter Tech C.R. Bard Inc. has offered to acq

C.R. Bard Inks Deal for Ireland-Based Provider of Catheter Tech

C.R. Bard Inc. has offered to acquire Wexford, Ireland-based Clearstream Technologies Group plc, an Irish developer of catheters used in angioplasty procedures, for about $68.5 million.

Murray Hill, N.J.-based Bard will pay 85 pence per share, or $1.33, for all outstanding shares of Clearstream’s stock, an 85 percent premium on its closing price of 45.89 pence per share on the London Stock Exchange.

“The acquisition of Clearstream represents a compelling strategic opportunity for Bard, enabling us to strengthen our leadership in vascular medical devices,” said C.R. Bard Chairman and CEO Timothy Ring.

Bard derives a little less than a third of its total sales from its vascular business, which produces catheters and stents for peripheral vascular disease and heart arrhythmias. In the first half of 2011, its vascular business jumped 15 percent to $413 million compared with the first half of 2010.