Hoje observei que a GDT mesmo antes da abertura do mercado já se cotava acima dos $68, já subia mais de 10%, para os interessados deixo aqui o gráfico. ;)
UPDATE 2-Boston Scientific offers to buy Guidant for $25 bln
CHICAGO, Dec 5 (Reuters) - Boston Scientific Corp. (BSX.N: Quote, Profile, Research) said on Monday it offered to buy medical-device maker Guidant Corp. (GDT.N: Quote, Profile, Research) for about $25 billion in cash and stock, topping an offer from Johnson & Johnson (JNJ.N: Quote, Profile, Research) .
Boston Scientific said it was offering $72 a share, a premium of about 14 percent over the $63.43 offered under a revised, lesser-valued deal between Guidant and Johnson & Johnson, and a 16 percent premium over Guidant's closing stock price on Friday.
A spokesman for Guidant, which saw its shares jump 13 percent in premarket trade on the new offer, could not be immediately reached for comment.
J&J and Guidant agreed last month to cut the offer price by 15 percent following safety concerns and litigation over Guidant's heart products.
Guidant's Chairman Jim Cornelius said at the time the lower price "appropriately reflects the business challenges we have experienced."
The latest offer would pit Boston Scientific squarely against larger rival Johnson & Johnson in the market for lucrative devices to open clogged heart arteries.
If consummated, it also would allow Boston Scientific to enter the $10 billion market for implantable heart defibrillators and pacemakers.
"This is a phenomenal move. They're literally telling J&J to put up or shut up," said Mark Landy, an analyst at Susquehanna Financial Group, who called it a "welcome holiday gift for Guidant."
Boston Scientific said the proposed deal would significantly diversify its revenue stream in multiple markets and put it in a stronger position to compete.
"Through this combination, Boston Scientific becomes more diversified, participating in two of the largest medical device markets - interventional cardiology and cardiac rhythm management," said Jim Tobin, president and chief executive Officer.
"To sum up, our proposal is better for Guidant, its shareholders and its employees than Johnson & Johnson's revised offer, and can be closed quickly," Tobin said.
The move comes on the heels of rumors on Friday that Abbott Laboratories Inc. (ABT.N: Quote, Profile, Research) would buy Boston Scientific amid unusually brisk Boston Scientific options activity.
Boston Scientific said it sees the deal closing in the first quarter of 2006, assuming it reaches an agreement by the end of the year. The company said it has factored into the transaction a $625 million break-up fee.
Thomas Gunderson, analyst at Piper Jaffray called the move "very clever," and noted that "a $72 bid is hard to ignore."
Guidant shares rose $8.18 to $70 on the Inet electronic brokerage system from a Friday close of $61.82 on the New York Stock Exchange.
Boston Scientific shares fell 8 percent, or $2.18 to $25.15 while Johnson & Johnson's stock was little changed. (Additional reporting by Belinda Goldsmith and Ed Tobin in New York)