Acquisition

RNS Number : 9200A

Ergomed plc

13 June 2016

 

Ergomed adds key capabilities through two German acquisitions

London, UK - 13 June 2016: Ergomed plc, (LSE: ERGO or 'Ergomed') announces that it has acquired two German service providers to complement and enhance its existing capabilities.  These are Dr. Oestreich + Partner GmbH ('O+P'), a full service contract research organisation based in Cologne and, Gesellschaft für angewandte Statistik + Datenanalyse mbH ('GASD'), a specialist statistics and data management company based in Neuss. Both companies are being acquired from their founders.

Together, the acquisitions will offer the potential for cross-selling, as well as improving the efficiency of the existing business.  

Commenting on the acquisitions, Dr. Miroslav Reljanovic, Chief Executive Officer of Ergomed, said:  "Both of these bolt-on acquisitions are very much in line with the strategy we laid out at IPO for augmenting the growth of our services businesses. They immediately add significant, tangible value including a proprietary Electronic Data Capture system, OPVERDI which will be developed further especially in the area of post-marketing data collection.  I look forward to working with the teams at O+P and GASD as we continue to build our services business together."

Dr. Wolfgang Oestreich, Managing Director and Co-Founder of O+P said: "We too are looking forward to joining forces with the Ergomed group to expand our German and neighbouring markets as well as to develop further our proprietary EDC system, OPVERDI."

Dr. Hans-Peter Hucke, Managing Director and Co-Founder of GASD added: "We at GASD are confident based on our 24+ years of experience in biostatistics and data management we can add strength and depth to Ergomed's statistics and data management capabilities."

Founded in 1991, O+P is a full service contract research organisation offering services from Phase II through to Phase IV clinical studies, as well as non-interventional and health-economic studies for the pharmaceutical and medical device industries.  In its 25 year history, O+P has worked on more than 150 assignments for more than 60 clients.  To support its clinical offering, since 1998 O+P has developed and uses a proprietary FDA validated Electronic Data Capture ('EDC') system called OPVERDI, which can be configured for individual trials on a multilingual basis.

Also founded in 1991, GASD offers data management, statistical analysis, biometric reporting and statistical consulting services for the pharmaceutical industry.  In total, GASD has undertaken more than 180 assignments in all phases of clinical research for over 50 clients.

Both O+P and GASD enjoy strong brand awareness in their home markets and O+P will complement Ergomed's existing European CRO network, while GASD will significantly enhance Ergomed's in-house capabilities and will become the centre of excellence for data management and statistics for Ergomed worldwide. The combined revenue of O+P and GASD in 2015 was approximately €1.3 million and the transaction is expected to be earnings enhancing.

A portion of the acquisition consideration will be satisfied through the issuance of new Ordinary Shares in Ergomed at an issue price of 137 pence per share.  Accordingly, admission of 138,329 Ordinary Shares is expected to take place at 8.00 a.m. on 14 June 2016 ("Admission").  Following Admission, the total number of Ordinary Shares in the Company will be 39,864,230. The Company holds no treasury shares and therefore the total number of voting rights is 39,864,230.

Enquiries:

Stifel Nicolaus Europe Limited	Tel:  [phone]
(Nominated Adviser and Joint Broker) Jonathan Senior / Stewart Wallace
Numis
(Joint Broker) Michael Meade / James Black	Tel: [phone]
FTI Consulting	Tel:  [phone]
Simon Conway / Mo Noonan

About Ergomed

Founded in 1997, Ergomed plc is a profitable UK-based company, providing drug development services to the pharmaceutical industry and has a growing portfolio of co-development partnerships. It operates in over 50 countries.

Ergomed provides clinical development, trial management and pharmacovigilance services to over 100 clients ranging from top 10 pharmaceutical and generics companies to small and mid-sized drug development companies. Ergomed successfully manages clinical development from Phase I through to late phase programmes.

Ergomed has wide therapeutic expertise, with a particular focus in oncology, neurology and immunology and the development orphan drugs. Ergomed's approach to clinical trials is differentiated from that of other providers by its innovative Study Site Management model and the use of Study Physician Teams, resulting in a close relationship between Ergomed and the physicians involved in clinical trials.

As well as providing high quality clinical development services, Ergomed is building a portfolio of co-development partnerships with pharma and biotech companies. Here Ergomed shares the risks and rewards of drug development, leveraging its expertise and services in return for carried interest in the drugs under development. - a low risk investment model for potential high returns. For further information, visit: http://ergomedplc.com.

Global pharmacovigilance and medical information services are provided through its group company PrimeVigilance. www.primevigilance.com

Forward Looking Statements

Certain statements contained within the announcement are forward looking statements and are based on current expectations, estimates and projections about the potential returns of Ergomed plc ("Ergomed") and industry and markets in which Ergomed operates, the Directors' beliefs and assumptions made by the Directors. Words such as "expects", "anticipates", "should", "intends", "plans", "believes", "seeks", "estimates", "projects", "pipeline" and variations of such words and similar expressions are intended to identify such forward looking statements and expectations. These statements are not guarantees of future performance or the ability to identify and consummate investments and involve certain risks, uncertainties, outcomes of negotiations and due diligence and assumptions that are difficult to predict, qualify or quantify. Therefore, actual outcomes and results may differ materially from what is expressed in such forward looking statements or expectations. Among the factors that could cause actual results to differ materially are: the general economic climate, competition, interest rate levels, loss of key personnel, the result of legal and commercial due diligence, the availability of financing on acceptable terms and changes in the legal or regulatory environment. These forward-looking statements speak only as of the date of this announcement. Ergomed expressly disclaims any obligation or undertaking to disseminate any updates or revisions to any forward-looking statements contained herein to reflect any change in Ergomed's expectations with regard thereto, any new information or any change in events, conditions or circumstances on which any such statements are based, unless required to do so by law or any appropriate regulatory authority.

 

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