Abbott Labs to Buy Facet Biotech; Wins FDA Approval for Cataract Treatment (ABT)

in Gold Gold Investing by admin — March 10, 2010 6:43 am | no comments

Healthcare giant Abbott Laboratories ( ABT ) said Wednesday that it will acquire drugmaker Facet Biotech for $450 million in cash, and also announced FDA approval for its latest cataract treatment. In pursuant to the deal, Abbott will pay $27 for each Facet share, which represents a 67% premium over Facet’s Tuesday closing price of $16.21. The total purchase price of the deal will actually be around $722 million, which includes $272 million in Facet’s cash and marketable securities. Back in December, Facet rejected a buyout offer of $17.50 per share from Biogen Idec, saying the bid grossly undervalued the company. In a separate announcement, Abbott said that it has received FDA approval for its Tecnis Multifocal 1-Piece intraocular lens, which was developed for cataract patients with and without presbyopia. The lens is implanted in a patient’s eye after the natural lens has been removed. Abbott shares fell 30 cents, or -0.6%, in premarket trading Wednesday. The Bottom Line We have been recommending shares of ABT since Oct.14, when the stock was trading at $49.65. The company has a 3.21% dividend yield, based on last night’s closing stock price of $54.80. Abbott Laboratories ( ABT ) is a “recommended” dividend stock, holding a Dividend.com DARS™ Rating of 3.5 out of 5 stars. Be sure to visit our complete recommended list of the Best Dividend Stocks , as well as a detailed explanation of our ratings system here .