GENZ, DePuy, NUVA, VITA, SYK, ZMH report 1Q:10 . . . Internal Fixation Systems, Soft Tissue Regeneration announce funding rounds . . . Smith & Nephew wins 510(k) clearance for additional VERILAST claims . . . First commercial use of Interventional Spine's RENEW interspinous process device . . . NUVA files legal dispute against OFIX over Osteocel IP . . . LDR completes follow-up on two-level Mobi-C study more
Yesterday afternoon on their 1Q:10 conference call, NuVasive revealed that they initiated a "legal dispute" against Orthofix over IP related to Osteocel, the stem-cell-based bone graft substitute acquired by NuVasive from Osiris in 2008. more
Earnings DJO reported 4Q:09 revenues of $257.2 million, up 5% over 4Q:08, with domestic rehab sales up 3% and domestic surgical implant sales up 8%. The company attributed the latter largely to "strong sales of our Reverse Shoulder Prosthesis." Net... more
Earnings Exactech reported 2Q:09 revenues of $43.3 million, representing a 1% decrease from the year-ago period and beating estimates by $0.3 million. The company reported net income of $2.6 million, or $0.20 per share, representing a 14% decrease from 2Q:08... more
Earnings Anika Therapeutics reported 2Q:09 revenue of $9.5 million, representing a 5% increase over 2Q:08 and missing estimates by $0.4 million. The company attributed revenue growth to both the ORTHOVISC and MONOVISC product lines, which contributed $5.6 million to total... more
Earnings Biomet reported FQ4:09 sales of $639.3 million, representing a 7% increase over the year-ago period. Among segments, hip increased 9%; knee increased 11%; extremity increased 18%; dental decreased 13%; fixation increased 5%; and spine increase 18%. All growth rates... more
Regulatory Blackstone Medical received an FDA warning letter relating to the ICON Modular Spinal Fixation System, which the company voluntarily recalled in December of 2005. The FDA said Blackstone failed to adhere to its own risk management procedures and failed... more
Earnings Alphatec Spine reported record consolidated revenue of $30.6 million reported in 1Q:09, which represents 32% growth over 1Q:08 and 8% sequential growth over revenues reported in 4Q:08. U.S. revenue growth of 28% over prior year was approximately three times... more
Earnings JNJ reported 1Q:09 sales of $15.0 billion, missing estimates by $0.4 billion and representing a 7% decline over 1Q:08, which the company attributed mostly to unfavorable exchange rates. Net income was $3.5 billion, or $1.26 per diluted share, beating... more
Orthofix announced some preliminary results from their Special General Meeting of Shareholders spurred by Ramius LLC's criticism of the company. Ramius, which owns 5.1% of Orthofix, was seeking to remove four members of the Board of Directors and replace them... more
Earnings Corin reported 2008 revenues of GBP 39.8 million ($57.6 million), an 8% increase over 2007 sales. The company also reported a pretax loss of GBP 3.9 million ($5.6 million), which reflected a GBP 5.2 million ($7.2 million) inventory write-down... more
Earnings Nobel Biocare reported 4Q:08 revenue of EUR 162.6 ($229.2 million), down 13% from 4Q:07. 4Q net profit of EUR 24.9 million ($32.3 million) was down 45% from the year-ago period and missed estimates of EUR 29.0 million ($40.9) million.... more
Earnings Kensey Nash reported FQ2:09 revenues of $20.8 million, up 6% over the year-ago period and beating estimates by $0.4 million. Net income for the quarter was $5.2 million, or $0.44 per diluted share, beating estimates by $0.04 and representing... more
Earnings aap Implantate pre-announced 4Q:08 and full-year 2008 revenues of EUR 7.1 million ($10.0 million) and EUR 31.2 million ($44.0 million), respectively. 4Q:08 revenues declined 24% from the year-ago period, which the company attributed to "more orders from global partners"... more
Earnings Alphatec Spine announced that, based on preliminary financial data, the company will report record consolidated quarterly revenues for 4Q:08 of approximately $28.4 million, an increase of approximately 33% over revenues from the prior year fourth quarter. For the year... more
M&A Medtronic completed its minority investment in Shandong Weigao Group. As a result of the investment, Medtronic now holds a 15 percent equity stake in Weigao. Medtronic purchased its 15 percent equity interest in Weigao for approximately HK$1.7 billion (or... more
Funding In addition to its regularly scheduled payments, Orthofix International will make a $10 million debt prepayment on December 29th in advance of the scheduled maturity. According to Executive Vice President and CFO Bob Vaters, "This is a good time... more
Earnings Wright Medical reiterated 4Q:08 revenue and earnings guidance on a call this week and lowered 2009 guidance based on less favorable foreign exchange rates. The company is now calling for 2009 revenues in the range of $510 million to... more
Earnings Stryker announced a 2008 dividend of $0.40 per share, an increase of 21% over the 2007 dividend, which is payable January 30, 2009. President and CEO Stephen MacMillan said the increased dividend reflects the company's continued growth and strong... more
In a letter to Orthofix shareholders released this morning, Ramius LLC criticized the company's "irresponsible" management and called the Blackstone acquisition " a failure." Ramius, a fund that holds 4.7% of OFIX's stock, called for the sale of Blackstone as... more
Earnings Alphatec Spine, Inc. announced that consolidated revenues for 3Q:08 were $25.8 million, an increase of 27.1% from the $20.3 million reported for the 3Q:07. U.S. revenues for 3Q:08 were $21.5 million, an increase of 27.7% from the $16.8 million... more
M&A Arthro Kinetics announced that they are pursuing a potential asset sale. The company said this week that their current $5.0 million cash balance was not sufficient to sustain operations. Tecomet has been acquired from Cardinal Health by Charlesbank Capital... more
Even in these troubled markets, there is a price for everything. On Monday, in the midst of one of the greatest credit dislocations in history, Orthofix announced that it has amended its existing credit facility. In an even more remarkable... more
M&A Wright Medical Group, Inc. acquired the RAYHACK System for wrist reconstruction, which consists of "procedure-specific bone-cutting guides and fixation plates that allow precise shortening and repositioning of the radius and ulna." The system will be available in the U.S.... more
Earnings Alphatec Spine, Inc. reported consolidated revenues for 2Q:08 of $23.9 million, an increase of 27% from the $18.8 million reported in 2Q:07. U.S. revenues for 2Q:08 were $19.4 million, an increase of 20% from the $16.2 million reported in... more
Regulatory Interventional Spine announced that the FDA has conditionally approved its IDE application for the PercuDyn System, pending the company providing some additional information to the FDA. CEO Walter Cuevas commented that the company will now begin collecting data to... more
Earnings Integra LifeSciences reported its financial results for the first quarter ending March 31, 2008. Total revenues were approximately $156.0 million, reflecting an increase of $33.0 million, or 27%, over the first quarter of 2007. Adjusted net income for the... more
Earnings Anika Therapeutics reported 1Q:08 total revenues of $8.55 million, an increase of 46% over the year-ago period, which the company attributed to strong domestic and international sales of ORTHOVISC. Revenues beat analysts' expectations by $0.2 million. Net income for... more
M&A Kinetic Concepts, Inc. announced plans to acquire LifeCell for $1.7 billion, or $51.00 per share, which represents an 18% premium over LifeCell's closing price on Friday and a 26% premium over the 90-day volume weighted average trading price. KCI... more
Earnings Biomet announced preliminary FQ3:08 revenues of $603.1 million, an increase of 14% over the year-ago period. By segment, reconstructive device sales increased 19% worldwide and 13% in the U.S.; knee sales increased 24% worldwide and 21% in the U.S.,... more
Earnings Biomet reported earnings for 2FQ:08 last week, with net sales up 11% to $578.1 million over the comparable quarter. Worldwide, knee sales were up 17%, and hip was up 12%. Extremity sales increased 11% and bone cements and accessories... more
Earnings Anika reported 3Q:07 product revenues of $7.28 million, up from $5.49 million in 3Q:06. The company attributed the sales growth to strong domestic and international sales of ORTHOVISC®. Net income for 3Q:07 was $1.8 million, or $0.16 per diluted... more
M&A Orthofix acquired the rights to all of the intellectual property related to the InSWing™ interspinous process spacer. InSWing is designed to relieve pain associated with lumbar spinal stenosis and can be used in a minimally invasive surgical procedure. Orthofix... more
Earnings Biologics: Orthovita reported 2Q:07 revenues of $14.85 million, beating estimates of $14.13 million and reflecting a 33% increase over 2Q:06. Sales growth was attributed to increased U.S. sales of VITOSS® FOAM and VITAGEL® products. Net loss decreased to $3.17... more
Orthofix announced via an 8-K filing that its Blackstone Medical subsidiary received a subpoena from the Department of Health and Human Service's Office of the Inspector General (OIG). The 8-K stated the investigation concerns physician consultant compensation as it relates... more
Earnings Biologics Integra LifeSciences announced 1Q:07 revenues of $123.0 million, beating estimates of $119.25 million and reflecting a 60% increase over 1Q:06. Net income for the quarter was $9.07 million, or $0.33 per share, meeting analysts' estimates. President and CEO... more
Earnings Spine Kyphon reported that worldwide revenues in 1Q:07 increased 40% to $128.1 million, which includes $18.1 million in X-STOP® Interspinous Process Decompression (IPD®) sales from the St. Francis acquisition. In the U.S., revenues increased 34% to $101.1 million, while... more
Earnings Orthofix International N.V. announced 4Q:06 revenue of $116.1 million, an increase of 45% over 4Q:05 and just missing estimates of $116.6 million. $28.1 million of 4Q:06's revenue can be attributed to the September 2006 acquisition of Blackstone Medical, Inc.... more
M&A Kyphon has signed definitive agreements to acquire all spine-related assets of Israeli company Disc-O-Tech Medical Technologies, Ltd. in a multi-stage transaction. Terms are summarized as follows: Kyphon will pay Disc-O-Tech $60 million upon execution of the definitive agreements; Kyphon... more
Earnings Stryker announced this week that the Board of Directors has declared a year-end cash dividend of $0.22 per share, an increase of 100% over the $0.11 dividend declared in December 2005. The dividend is payable January 31, 2007 to... more
Earnings: Biologics: Orthovita reported 2Q:06 product sales came in at $11.2 million, up 32% compared to 2Q:05. On a non-GAAP basis net loss for the quarter was $5.1 million, or a loss of $0.10 per share. The Company did not... more
This morning Orthofix International, NV (NasdaqGS: OFIX) announced that it has signed an agreement to acquire independent spinal implant developer Blackstone Medical, Inc. for $333 million in cash. Blackstone revenues were $22mm in 2Q:06 and EBIT was approximately $2mm. Trailing... more
Earnings Results: Biologics: Anika Therapeutics announced 2Q:06 net sales increased 11% to $7.1 million. Product revenues grew 74% while licensing, milestone and contract revenue was down 77%. The large product sales growth was partially driven by higher demand for OrthoVisc®;... more
Appointment: Biomet, Inc. appointed Charles E. Niemier as President of EBI's operations following the resignation of its former president, Bart J. Doedens, M.D. Mr. Niemier has been a member of the senior management team and Board of Directors for more... more
This morning Orthofix announced the appointment of Michael M. Finegan as Vice President of Corporate Development and head of the Company's new Corporate Development Group. His duties will include identifying external opportunities for the company to increase its revenues and... more
On Friday, June 2, the FDA's Orthopedic and Rehabilitation Devices Panel met to discuss the RS Medical petition to reclassify noninvasive bone growth stimulators from Class III to Class II. In a 4-2 vote, the panel recommended leaving the bone... more
Appointment: Stryker Corp. appointed three officers to the company: Luciano Cattani, Vice President, Group President, International; Elizabeth A. Staub, Vice President of Regulatory Affairs and Quality Assurance, Stryker Corporation and Bronwen R. Taylor, Chief Compliance Officer, Stryker Corporation. Mr. Cattani... more
The first group of orthopedic companies reported their 1Q:06 this week and took in $5.3 billion so far. The total aggregated revenues for the quarter were up by 7% from $4.9 billion in 1Q:05. The industry netted $637.8 million, a... more
The announcement of Biomet hiring investment bank Morgan Stanley, sent its stock price up 11% in one day. With news of Dane Miller resigning and the Company hiring a banker, there were many speculations suggesting Biomet is for sale. However,... more
We are preparing for AAOS in Chicago, IL and invite you to check back to our website for information on analyst meetings and our top picks of scientific events happening at AAOS. Earnings: Two hip & knee orthopedic companies (Exactech,... more
Orthofix International, N.V. announced after the market close that Alan W. Milinazzo, the Company's Chief Operating Officer (COO), has been promoted to Group President and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) effective April 1. He will succeed Charles W. Federico, who will... more
We wrap up this quarter with aggregated earnings and sales in the public orthopedic sector of $560 million and $5 billion, respectively, as a few more companies reported this week. For 3Q:05, orthopedic sales were up by 13% ($5.0 billion... more
It has been a busy week for many CEOs and CFOs in the orthopedic device sector. In the past two weeks orthopedic companies reported 3Q:05 sales of $4.7 billion which was a 12% increase over the 3Q:04. Net earnings for... more
While Medtronic was the big winner this week, Wright Medical ("WMGI") captured more headlines with two important news items that have negatively impacted their stock price. On Wednesday, WMGI's stock price suffered a huge loss with 20% decline intraday due... more
NASS Notes The North American Spine Society's 20th Annual Meeting in Philadelphia had a mature and thoughtful character this year compared to the fever pitch of prior meetings. The theme of this year's meeting was physician responsibility with major speeches... more
On Friday, Orthofix announced that its Novamedix unit will receive $75 million as a settlement of its long running patent dispute Kinetic Concepts Inc. (KCI). The case was filed by Novamedix in 1992 and relates to KCI's PlexiPulse line of... more
It's all about spine this week. With NASS in full swing in Philadelphia, many companies eagerly issued press releases during the conference. Clinical: Cervical-Stim® is a post-operative cervical brace that generates a uniformed, low-level pulsed electromagnetic field (PEMF) at the... more
It's all about spine this week. With NASS in full swing in Philadelphia, many companies eagerly issued press releases during the conference. Clinical: Cervical-Stim® is a post-operative cervical brace that generates a uniformed, low-level pulsed electromagnetic field (PEMF) at the... more
The FDA Orthopedic and Rehabilitation Devices Panel held a meeting September 8th and 9th to rule on two important issues: Smith & Nephew's hip resurfacing device and the design of clinical studies for spinal devices. You can find background information... more
This morning, Orthofix International N.V. (NASDAQ: OFIX) announced that Alan W. Milinazzo, 45, has joined the Company as its Chief Operating Officer (COO). Milinazzo joins Orthofix as an experienced hand in the medical device field with decades of experience, most... more
The traditionally steady-as-she-goes bracing sector has been heating up with some M&A activity lately. Two weeks ago, Ossur annouced it was buying Royce Medical and, in the last five days, we have two new events to consider: (i) dj Orthopedics... more
Thanks to one of our readers who reminded me that I should add international dial-in numbers to the conference calls list. Since most of the companies have already reported their earnings, I am providing you with replay information in case... more
Innovative Spinal Technologies, Inc. (IST), the Texas Back Institute affiliate that develops of spine products, intellectual property and services, announced yesterday that it has closed a $39 million Series B financing. IST is is clearly making the leap from incubator... more
Earnings: Please refer to the table (below) for individual company sales and earnings. It's all about earnings this week... Biologics: Clearly, the big winner this week is LifeCell Corp. who reported strong earnings on Monday stock was up 24% at... more
Perhaps the most startling innovation of this years AOSSM sports medicine conference was a palm pilot kiosk where surgeons and exhibitors could beam the entire conference program and floorplan into their cellphones and PDAs in about 30 seconds. Immediately addicted,... more
While touring the floors of the AOSSM sports medicine conference in Colorado this morning, Brad Mason the President of BREG (an Orthofix company) pulled us aside to show us the company's new FUSION functional knee brace. Before we could say... more
This morning Orthofix announced that Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) approved the Company's request to modify its coding mechanisms to include specific coding for hospital procedures utilizing external fixation devices. As of October of this year, facilities will... more
We have aggregated the 4Q:04 and 3Q:04 reported revenues (includes the effects of foreign currency) for 16 public orthopedic companies. Although we would have liked to use revenue growth rates which excluded foreign currency, a majority of the companies report... more
In late December, Orthofix (Nasdaq: OFIX) announced a significant milestone: it received an FDA approval to market its Cervical-Stim' bone growth stimulator as an FDA Class III device. That makes Orthofix the first and only company to provide an FDA-approved... more
Last week Orthofix (Nasdaq: OFIX) announced that revenues for 3Q:04, were $71.5 million, an increase of 39 percent over the $51.3 million reported for 3Q:03. The 2004 revenue number includes the acquired Breg revenues. The Company noted that the incremental... more
Last week Orthofix announced that second quarter sales are expected to be approximately $70.8 million which are less than consensus analyst expectations of $73.0 million to $73.8 million. Earnings per share are expected to approximate between $0.49 and $0.51 per... more
Orthofix had its first full quarter that included the BREG acquisition and the results were solid. Revenues grew year-over-year by 47% to $70.7 million in 1Q:04 from $48.2 million in 1Q:03. We note that $2.4 million of that growth comes... more
Orthofix International N.V. (NASDAQ NM:OFIX) announced a shift in its Board structure on Friday where Jim Gero, a member of the OFIX Board of Directors since 1997, will become its new Chairman of the Board. He will replace Robert Gaines-Cooper... more
On Thursday, Orthofix (OFIX) announced revenues of $203.7 million for the year ended December 31, 2003, an increase of 15% over the prior year. Interestingly, over a quarter of the incremental revenue can be attributed to the US dollar decline. ... more
It seems that rising orthopedic valuations on Wall Street are not the only voice hailing the "Decade of Orthopedics." The Wall Street Journal got into the act last Tuesday by writing a positive piece on one of the more interesting... more
Peter Drucker asked that question fifty years ago in his seminal book The Practice of Management. While his generic answer (“the only function of a business is to create customer value and to innovate.”) remains as valuable in 2004 as... more
Charlie Federico liked his Physio-Stim distributor so much, that he decided to buy the company – for $150 million or 2.6x sales. This will be, by far, the largest transaction in Orthofix's history – and, we think, qualifies and that... more
For the third quarter, with three more companies yet to report, public orthopedic companies have reported that their sales grew 17.5% on a year-over-year basis. To put that into perspective, U.S. GDP grew at a 7.2% annual rate in the... more
In this era of recombinant bone morphogenic proteins that cost $5,000 per patient per level, it's refreshing to note that there are more ways to jump start bone healing. Last week, Orthofix announced it had submitted data to the FDA... more
Apparently “off-label” is a “no-no” if you're a U.S. military physician. Orthofix fought for a while, then settled. Last week, Orthofix decided it was better off avoiding the costs of a protracted litigation battle with the government and opted to... more
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