Sartorius to takeover Stedim BioSystems

Sartorius Limited has been cleared for the acquisition of a controlling stake in Stedim Biosystems.

The antitrust authorities in Germany, USA and Spain have unconditionally cleared the acquisition leading to a merger of the two biotechnology companies.

Sartorius says it aims to complete the transaction by summer 2007, which it states will further strengthen its growing and "highly profitable biotechnology activities".

Under Sartorius’ proposals, Stedim is to be combined into an independent biotechnology subgroup, in which Sartorius will hold the majority of the voting rights.

The news follows preliminary results for the third quarter from the group, which showed that order intake increased by 5.7 per cent to £95.7 million.

Sartorius said that it expects to make significant gains in sales revenue and earnings over the course of the year.

Stedim expects projected organic growth targets to be at ten per cent, with the company’s EBIT margin, excluding transaction and integration costs, thought to climb to about 12 per cent.