Henry Schein, Inc. (HSIC) recently forged an agreement to buy an 80% stake in privately-held Medivet S.A., a leading distributor of animal health products and services in Poland. The Polish company registered sales of $80 million in 2012.
Though the financial terms of the transaction are yet to be disclosed, Henry Schein expects the acquisition to be dilutive to its earnings per share by approximately 1 cent in the year of acquisition and accretive by 1 to 2 cents in the following year. The transaction is expected to be sealed in the first quarter of 2014, subject to the approval of Poland’s competition and tax authorities.
The Global Animal Health business of Henry Schein has been performing steadily for the last few years and has accounted for almost 27% of the company’s worldwide sales in third-quarter 2013.
Poland is the sixth largest economy in the European Union with a strong annual income growth rate. It is interesting to note that Poland has an estimated number of 13 million pets. Thus, it is not surprising that HSIC has chosen the country, foreseeing the potential that it has for its Animal Health business.
Henry Schein is the world's largest provider of health care products and services to office-based dental, animal health and medical practitioners. The animal health business of this global giant operates in 11 European countries. Poland thus marks its 12th European market.
Henry Schein seeks to expand its global footprint in this vital market through acquisitions as well as organic growth. Additionally, Henry Schein looks forward to strengthen its existing business across Eastern Europe as Medivet has a large animal-health customer base of 2,200, spread all across Poland.
Medivet and its customers are also expected to benefit from this acquisition. The availability of high-quality products and supplies from HSIC will enable the company to serve its established customer base in Poland in a more competent manner, thus resulting in enhanced business and growth.
We believe that such inorganic developments will eventually boost operational growth for Henry Schein in the long term.
Currently, Henry Schein carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). However, some better-performing stocks that are worth a look include Align Technology Inc. (ALGN) and McKesson Corp. (MCK), both with a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy) and Cardinal Health, Inc. (CAH) carrying a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy).
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