Agilent announced the definitive agreement to acquire Stratagene
on April 6, 2007. The company paid approximately $250 million for
Stratagene, or $10.94 per share of common stock. Completion of this
acquisition will have no impact on Agilent's earnings-per-share
guidance. Agilent's revenue guidance for the third quarter is now
$1.38 billion to $1.42 billion.
Stratagene is a worldwide leader in developing innovative products
and technologies for the growing life science research market. Agilent
believes the total addressable life science market to be $14 billion,
with an estimated compounded annual growth rate of 7 to 9 percent over
the next three years.
"We are excited about the opportunities ahead," said Nick Roelofs,
vice president and general manager of Agilent's Life Sciences
Solutions Unit. "With our combined product portfolios, technology, R&D
expertise and employees, we will serve a wider customer base with more
comprehensive workflow solutions. This acquisition is truly an example
of one-plus-one is greater than two because of the workflow leverage
we anticipate from combining our two companies."
Stratagene supports advances in life sciences by inventing,
manufacturing and marketing products that simplify, accelerate and
improve research. Since 1984, the company's products have been used
throughout the academic, industry and government research sectors in
fields spanning molecular biology, genomics, proteomics, drug
discovery and toxicology. Stratagene employs more than 450 people
worldwide, who have now joined Agilent.
The Stratagene acquisition is expected to strengthen Agilent's
life science offerings in genomics and proteomics, particularly in
academia and government where Stratagene products and market
leadership are well recognized. Meanwhile, Agilent's sales channel
strength in the pharmaceutical market provides additional
opportunities for expanding the reach of Stratagene's portfolio of
reagents and instruments.
Stratagene is the largest acquisition that Agilent has made in
several years, underscoring the company's commitment to life sciences.
Stratagene's extensive portfolio of PCR enzymes and instrument
capabilities, including quantitative PCR, coupled with Agilent's range
of product platforms, software and data management capabilities,
provides full workflow solutions to both academic and pharmaceutical
customers.
Stratagene's product portfolio includes reagents for life science
research and instruments. The company also offers a range of
diagnostics products, including applications for allergy testing and
urinalysis.
Stratagene's life science reagent and instrument manufacturing
facility in Cedar Creek, Texas, as well as its diagnostics facilities
in Garden Grove, Calif., and Edinburgh, Scotland, are all registered
to the ISO 13485 standard. The diagnostics facilities are also
licensed medical device manufacturers, compliant with the U.S. Food
and Drug Administration's Quality System Regulation (QSR).
Other major Stratagene locations are La Jolla, Calif.; Tokyo,
Japan; and Amsterdam, the Netherlands.
Agilent and Stratagene also have announced the sale of certain
Stratagene assets to a new company, Decisive Diagnostics (a subsidiary
of Catalyst Assets LLC), an entity formed by Dr. Joseph A. Sorge,
former chairman, CEO and founder of Stratagene. Decisive Diagnostics
is an entity formed to pursue molecular diagnostic applications.
Decisive Diagnostics will acquire for $6.6 million certain assets of
Stratagene from Agilent and license from Agilent certain of
Stratagene's molecular diagnostic technologies.
More information about Stratagene is available at
www.stratagene.com.
Agilent in Life Sciences
Agilent is the global leader in gas chromatography and gas
chromatography/mass spectrometry, and liquid chromatography and liquid
chromatography/mass spectrometry used to analyze the composition of
air, water, food, drugs, industrial process streams and forensic
evidence. The company is also a leading developer of hardware and
software tools for life science analysis including genomics,
proteomics and metabolomics. The company pioneered ink-jet in situ
synthesis of nucleic acid microarray probes and microfluidic
lab-on-a-chip Bioanalyzer and nano LC/MS applications that accelerate
customer workflows.
About Agilent Technologies
Agilent Technologies Inc. (NYSE: A) is the world's premier
measurement company and a technology leader in communications,
electronics, life sciences and chemical analysis. The company's 19,000
employees serve customers in more than 110 countries. Agilent had net
revenue of $5.0 billion in fiscal year 2006. Information about Agilent
is available on the Web at www.agilent.com.
Forward-Looking Statements
This news release contains forward-looking statements as defined
in the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 and is subject to the safe
harbors created therein. The forward-looking statements contained
herein include, but are not limited to, information regarding
Stratagene's technological expertise and its enhancement of our
combined product portfolio, the contribution Stratagene would make to
Agilent's ability to address customer demands, the ability of Agilent
to provide improved products, services and support to its customers,
Agilent's future revenues and earnings and guidance for Agilent for
the third quarter of 2007. These forward-looking statements involve
risks and uncertainties that could cause Agilent's results to differ
materially from management's current expectations. Such risks and
uncertainties include, but are not limited to, risks associated with
the integration of Stratagene, risks associated with changes in demand
for Agilent's and Stratagene's products, and risks associated with the
development generally of Agilent's overall strategic objectives.
In addition, other risks that Agilent faces in running its
operations include the ability to execute successfully through
business cycles; ongoing competitive, pricing and gross margin
pressures; the impact of geopolitical uncertainties on our markets and
our ability to conduct business; the ability to improve asset
performance to adapt to changes in demand; the ability to successfully
introduce new products at the right time, price and mix and other
risks detailed in Agilent's filings with the Securities and Exchange
Commission, including its Annual Report on Form 10-K for the period
ended October 31, 2006, and its Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the
period ended April 30, 2007. Forward-looking statements are based on
the beliefs and assumptions of Agilent's management and on currently
available information. Agilent undertakes no responsibility to
publicly update or revise any forward-looking statement.
NOTE TO EDITORS: Further technology, corporate citizenship and
executive news is available on the Agilent news site at
www.agilent.com/go/news.
SOURCE: Agilent Technologies Inc.
Agilent Corporate
Michele Drake, +1 408-345-8396 (Editorial)
[email protected]
or
Agilent LSCA
Stuart Matlow, +1 408-553-7191 (Editorial)
[email protected]
or
Agilent
Rodney Gonsalves, +1 408-345-8948 (Investors)
[email protected]