Tuesday, September 22, 2015
Research Triangle Park surgical device manufacturer TransEnterix, Inc. has acquired the surgical robotics division of Sofar S.p.A., an Italian health care company, in a deal that could be worth $100 million.
Sofar developed the Telelap ALF-X robotic system for minimally invasive surgery, which TransEnterix will combine with SurgiBot, the surgical robot it developed.
“The combination of SurgiBot and ALF-X will allow TransEnterix to address a larger market opportunity with compelling patient, surgeon and hospital value,” said Todd M. Pope, president and CEO of TransEnterix. “We believe this combination accelerates our commercialization timeline and revenue ramp as we can immediately begin selling the ALF-X in many markets globally.”
At the acquisition closing, Sofar received $25 million in cash and 15.5 million shares of TransEnterix common stock with a value of $43.7 million, based on the Sept. 18 closing price of $2.81. Shares traded down to close at $2.67 Monday, giving the company a market value of $225 million. TransEnterix announced the acquisition after markets closed.
In June, TransEnterix raised $50 million from public markets to help launch a sales effort. The company reported having $71 million in cash and equivalents as of June 30. As it has been primarily a research and development stage company, TransEnterix has not generated significant revenue. At its core, the company’s leaders and investors believe there will be an increasing number of ambulatory surgery centers in the United States and internationally that could benefit from the addition of robotic-assisted minimally invasive surgery systems.
Since inception, TransEnterix has accumulated deficit of $155 million, largely from research and development costs.
bizjournals.com
