Medtronic made medtech headlines last week when it announced it would acquire Companion Medical, the manufacturer of a smart insulin pen. The deal was for an undisclosed sum.
The acquisition of Companion Medical builds upon prior Medtronic strategic acquisitions, including Nutrino and Klue, that form the building blocks to design powerful algorithms leveraging the company’s deep data science and AI capabilities.
With this latest acquisition, Medtronic will work to further advance the automation of insights and dosing capabilities to help alleviate burden regardless of the technology that’s preferred for insulin delivery. In addition, Medtronic will look to expand the availability of InPen globally.
“This acquisition is an ideal strategic fit for Medtronic as we further simplify diabetes management and improve outcomes by optimizing dosing decisions for the large number of people using multiple daily injection (MDI). We look forward to building upon the success of the InPen by combining it with our intelligent algorithms to deliver proactive dosing advice personalized to each individual. This smart CGM system can help people think less about diabetes and be able to live life with more freedom, on their own terms,” Sean Salmon, executive vice president and president of the Diabetes Group at Medtronic, said in a release. ”Our goal is to become a trusted partner that offers consistent support whether an individual wants to stay on MDI, transition to automated insulin delivery or take a break from their pump.”
What makes this deal stand out is that the Dublin-based company hinted a few months earlier that acquisitions could be in its future.
During the earnings call, Medtronic’s CEO Geoff Martha answered questions from analysts head-on about the potential for new deals.
“I think it is a good time to do M&A, as you mentioned, asset prices are down," Martha said, according to a Seeking Alpha transcript of the call. "It doesn't mean that we lower our standards. I just think, again, we can play offense. And I think our focus remains the same on tuck-ins."
