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Microcap & Penny Stocks : AMERICAN BIOMED, Minimally Invasive Technology (ABMI) -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Commgod who wrote (1289)	6/16/1998 12:27:00 PM
From: Jeffrey L. Henken	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 2887

Boston Scientific projects combined results biz.yahoo.com CHICAGO, June 16 (Reuters) - Boston Scientific Corp. said Tuesday it expects to earn about $2.47 per share on sales of $3.2 billion in 1999 if it closes its acquisition of the Schneider Worldwide medical technology unit of Pfizer Inc. (PFE - news) for $2.1 billion in cash. ''That's what we think the combined numbers will look like. We hope there's upside to this model. We know there's downside to this model,'' Boston Scientific Chief Financial Officer Larry Best said in a conference call. Shares in the Natick, Mass.-based medical technology company were up 3-1/8 at 64-1/8 on the New York Stock Exchange following news that it had agreed to buy Schneider. It would be Boston Scientific's 11th acquisition since 1995. Excluding the Schneider acquisition, Best said Boston Scientific had expected 1999 revenues of $2.7 billion and earnings of about $2.60 per share. ''That's the model that we used as the base'' when exploring the Schneider deal, Best said. In combining the businesses, Best said, ''You come out with roughly 2 percent dilution from where the Street is today ... We believe this transaction will be accretive beginning in the year 2000 and in subsequent years.'' The transaction will be recorded as a purchase and is expected to close in the fourth quarter, he said. Boston Scientific earned $139.3 million, or $0.70 per diluted share, on revenues of $1.9 billion in 1997. Prior to the Schneider announcement, analysts had expected Boston Scientific to earn $1.91 per share this year and $2.53 in 1999, according to First Call. Best said Schneider was attractive because it would bring Boston Scientific several new technologies and markets. Among these is a rapid-exchange catheter line that Boston Scientific plans to combine with its NIR stent, expected to be launched on the U.S. market this summer. Combining NIR with Schneider's rapid-exchange catheter will directly challenge Guidant Corp.'s (GDT - news) hold on the U.S. market for the combined technologies, Best said. ''Our business in the next 24 months relies heavily on this technology called the stent,'' he said. Stents are tiny, wire-mesh tubes used to strengthen the weakened walls of diseased blood vessels in the heart. Schneider also would put Boston Scientific into markets for non-coronary stents and nylon angioplasty balloons, Best said. In 1997 Schneider reported sales of about $330 million. The unit, based in Switzerland, was put up for sale by drug giant Pfizer in February. Pfizer is also divesting its Howmedica orthopedics unit and its American Medical Systems medical technology unit. BSX has made 11 acquisitions since 1995. JNJ has made quite a few in the minimally invasive surgical area themselves. AVE has recently announced they are looking at 10 to 12 different companies as acquisition possibilities. ABMI could be the next company on the auction block. GO ABMI! Regards, Jeff