Bergen Plans Another Acquisition
On the heels of a successful takeover of an Alabama competitor, Bergen Brunswig Corp., the giant pharmaceutical wholesaler, said Wednesday that it has signed a tentative agreement to purchase a private North Carolina medical supplies distributor.
The proposed acquisition of Dr. T.C. Smith Co., with offices in Asheville and Raleigh, was signed Wednesday for an estimated $20 million, Bergen Brunswig Vice President Neil Dimick said.
The actual purchase price, based on market value, will be determined when the deal is finalized, he said.
The purchase of Dr. T.C. Smith, however, is subject to federal regulatory approvals. Barring problems obtaining antitrust approvals, the small, family-owned company could be a part of Bergen Brunswig as early as November, Dimick said.
The deal will likely increase Bergen Brunswig’s yearly revenue by about $150 million. It also gives the company a larger presence in the mid-Atlantic region.
Bergen Brunswig has been targeting the mid-Atlantic and the Southeast regions for some time. In February, it purchased drug distributor Owens & Minor Inc. in Richmond, Va., for about $50 million. That company had about $300 million in annual revenue.
And since July, Bergen Brunswig has been working toward a $470-million purchase of Durr-Fillauer Medical Inc. in Montgomery, Ala., which has an office in North Carolina.
That deal, which came after months of legal and financial haggling, is expected to close Friday, Dimick said.
Like Durr-Fillauer, Dr. T.C. Smith sells surgical supplies as well as pharmaceuticals--Bergen Brunswig’s specialty.
Dimick said that it is Bergen Brunswig’s intention to continue specializing in drug sales, even though its last two takeovers involve companies that deal in surgical supplies. He added though, that surgical supplies sales are a small part of both Dr. T.C. Smith and Durr-Fillauer.
He said that Bergen Brunswig is evaluating the two companies and is considering the possibility of selling off the surgical supply sectors of both firms. Cardinal Distribution Inc. of Dublin, Ohio, which vied for Durr-Fillauer against Bergen Brunswig, also had hoped to sell off the surgical supply segment of that company in its failed merger agreement.
