By Jeremy Carroll
STAFF REPORTER
Published: December 9, 2013 5:03 pm ET
Updated: December 9, 2013 5:04 pm ET
Medical device maker Covidien plc has acquired Given Imaging Ltd. for approximately $860 million, the company announced.
Dublin, Ireland-based Covidien said it will acquire the company at $30 a share, $6.35 more than its closing price before the deal was announced on Dec. 7. The deal will be a cash transaction, Covidien said.
Given Imaging specializes in the gastrointestinal market, including a pill equipped with a camera that patients swallow that allows doctors to detect issues in the digestive system.
The move will expand Covidien deeper into the gastrointestinal market, Bryan Hanson, group president of medical devices in the U.S. said in a statement.
“Adding Given’s portfolio of diagnostics to our portfolio accelerates Covidien’s strategy of providing physicians with products that support the patient along the care continuum from diagnosis to treatment,” he said in the statement. “It also confirms our leadership in developing less-invasive screening, diagnosis and treatment solutions that can improve patient outcomes and lower healthcare costs.”
Homi Shamir, president and CEO of Given Imaging, said in a statement that combining the two companies’ capabilities gives them the “potential to transform this market.”
The deal is expected to close by March 31, but it still needs shareholder approval from Given Imaging.
Covidien said it expected Given Imaging to add $40 million to $50 million per quarter in revenue to the company’s medical devices segment. Covidien recently reported medical device sales of $8.49 billion in its 2013 fiscal year. | 
