SIAL (MM)

With the target to strengthen its position, Qiagen (QGEN) has recently decided to acquire Australia based Cellestis Limited for $3.69 (A$3.55) per share in cash or a transaction value of approximately $355 million (A$341 million). With this acquisition, Quiagen is expected to get access to Cellestis’ proprietary QuantiFERON technology, an innovative disease diagnostic tool.

This pre-molecular testing technology QuantiFERON has been commercialized by Cellestis with already marketed test and its flagship product QuantiFERON-TB Gold In-Tube (QFT) for detection of latent tuberculosis (TB).

Also the company is in the early stages of commercializing QuantiFERON-CMV to monitor the disease risk of life-threatening CMV virus. This patent-protected platform technology enables quick detection of the diseases compared to other traditional DNA based molecular tests.

With this latest move, Qiagen is tending to complement and enrich its molecular diagnostic product portfolio thereby, accelerating the growth of molecular diagnostic testing. QuantiFERON is expected to add life to Qiagen's current assay portfolio and pipeline while relocating and combining with products like QIAsymphony, QIAensemble and  other  relevant needs. 

In a strategic front, Qiagen is focusing on expanding its molecular diagnostics product portfolio to drive growth further in 2011 and beyond. This segment (represented 48% of total sales in fourth quarter of 2010) recorded a growth of 7% year-over-year driven by demand of the profiling assays portfolio.

Based on a solid cash position ($828 million during the quarter) the company is adopting an aggressive acquisition strategy in order to widen its scope and strengthen its position in the competitive landscape with major players like Life Technologies (LIFE) and Sigma-Aldrich (SIAL).

 
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