DGAP-Adhoc: Eckert & Ziegler acquires American cancer specialist - impact on earnings due to one-time expenses

Eckert & Ziegler Strahlen- und Medizintechnik AG / Key word(s): Acquisition

17.09.2013 07:48

Dissemination of an Ad hoc announcement according to § 15 WpHG, transmitted
by DGAP - a company of EQS Group AG.
The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement.

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Berlin, September 17, 2013. Eckert & Ziegler BEBIG s.a., Eckert & Ziegler
AG's medical device division, is to acquire the prostate cancer implants
business of the American company Biocompatibles Inc. for $5 million.
Biocompatibles Inc., a BTG International group company, is based in
Connecticut and is the fourth largest provider of such products in the
United States and generated sales of approximately EUR8 million in 2012.
Biocompatibles Inc. had voluntarily suspended manufacture and delivery of
its products in May 2013 following claims of shortcomings in its
documentation of the manufacturing process by the U.S. Food and Drug
Administration.

Eckert & Ziegler is now acquiring the division and hopes to remedy these
shortcomings quickly so that it can resume delivery. The management expects
to be able to win back customers who have migrated elsewhere as
Biocompatibles has developed several innovations that improve the use of
implants and has patented these unique solutions. By purchasing the
division, Eckert & Ziegler will be able to offer these enhanced solutions
to its European customers too. In the medium term, the Eckert & Ziegler
Group intends to use Biocompatibles as an American distribution platform
for its entire range of tumor irradiation products.
Eckert & Ziegler expects unforeseen additional costs of up to EUR1.2
million for start-up losses until the American implant business can be
resumed. The forecast for fiscal year 2013 has therefore fallen from
EUR2.15 to EUR1.95 net profit per share, equivalent to the value of the
previous year (2012).

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Information and Explaination of the Issuer to this News:

'The acquisition is a strategic investment decision and represents a
milestone in our company's history despite the one-time expenses for
entering the US implant business. The North American market is the largest
single market for medical technology and offers excellent growth
opportunities. The implants market is valued at some EUR45 million and the
market for tumor radiation equipment at around EUR70 million. The
acquisition offers us potential for synergies in markets, products and
technologies that will strengthen our market position. Thanks to our
long-standing experience in isotope technology, we are confident that we
will be able to introduce FDA-compliant manufacturing processes at the
Oxford site quickly and recommence production again soon,' said Dr. Edgar
Löffler, Managing Director of Eckert & Ziegler BEBIG s.a. and Member of the
Executive Board of Eckert & Ziegler AG.

About Eckert & Ziegler
Eckert & Ziegler Group (ISIN DE0005659700) is one of the world's largest
providers of isotope technology for radiation therapy and nuclear medicine
with 630 employees and annual sales of EUR 120 million. Eckert & Ziegler
BEBIG s.a., an associated company, manufactures brachytherapy products and
is a European market leader in the prostate implant segment.
www.ezag.com

Your contact:
Eckert & Ziegler AG, Karolin Riehle, Investor Relations
Robert-Rössle-Str. 10, 13125 Berlin
Tel.: +49 (0) 30 / 94 10 84-138
karolin.riehle@ezag.de
www.ezag.de

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Language: English
Company: Eckert & Ziegler Strahlen- und Medizintechnik AG
Robert-Rössle-Str.10
13125 Berlin
Germany
Phone: 49 30 941084-138
Fax: 49 30 941084-112
E-mail: karolin.riehle@ezag.de
Internet: www.ezag.de
ISIN: DE0005659700
WKN: 565970
Listed: Regulierter Markt in Frankfurt (Prime Standard), Stuttgart;
Freiverkehr in Berlin, Düsseldorf, Hamburg, München

End of Announcement DGAP News-Service

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