OPKO Health To Expand Latin American Presence With Acquisition Of Brazilian Pharmaceutical Company

OPKO Health, Inc. (NYSE: OPK) has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire Silcon Comércio, Importacao E Exportacao de Produtos Farmaceuticos e Cosmeticos Ltda. Domiciled in Sao Paulo, Brazil, Silcon expands OPKO’s presence in Latin America and complements business activities of units in Chile and Mexico.

Silcon broadens OPKO’s reach in Latin America with this entry into the largest market in the region. Beyond providing important cross marketing opportunities for its growing portfolio of products, Silcon represents an important strategic element for OPKO’s diagnostic business; it permits commercialization of the 4KScore™ prostate cancer test in Brazil as a reference laboratory test while OPKO obtains local approval to market its point of care microfluidics disposable test cassettes.

“With this acquisition, OPKO establishes a footprint in the most important growth market in South America,” said Phillip Frost, M.D., Chairman and CEO of OPKO. “The acquisition allows OPKO to satisfy regulatory requirements for doing business in Brazil, which might otherwise be a prolonged process. Moreover, this platform enhances commercial synergies among our recent acquisitions and facilitates the near-term commercialization in the Brazilian market of our 4Kscore™, a novel panel of biomarkers and associated algorithm to more accurately detect and grade possible prostate cancers.”

About OPKO Health, Inc.

OPKO is a multinational biopharmaceutical and diagnostics company that seeks to establish industry leading positions in large, rapidly growing markets by leveraging its discovery, development and commercialization expertise and novel and proprietary technologies.

This press release contains "forward-looking statements," as that term is defined under the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 (PSLRA), which statements may be identified by words such as "expects," "plans," "projects," "will," "may," "anticipates," "believes," "should," "intends," "estimates," and other words of similar meaning, including statements regarding the benefits and synergies resulting from the acquisition of Silcon, including whether OPKO’s portfolio of products in Latin America will grow and Silcon will provide the anticipated cross marketing opportunities, whether Silcon will provide a commercial platform that supports the near-term launch of OPKO’s 4Kscore™ in Brazil, the timing for the launch of the 4Kscore™, whether Silcon will enable OPKO to satisfy regulatory requirements for doing business in Brazil,, the ability to obtain local approval of OPKO’s point of care microfluidics disposable test cassettes, whether OPKO will be successful in migrating its 4Kscore™ onto the microfluidics disposable test cassettes, the potential benefits of the 4Kscore™, the ability to more accurately detect and grade possible prostate cancers, whether OPKO or Silcon will be able to successfully commercialize the 4Kscore™, as well as other non-historical statements about our expectations, beliefs or intentions regarding our business, technologies and products, financial condition, strategies or prospects. Many factors could cause our actual activities or results to differ materially from the activities and results anticipated in forward-looking statements. These factors include those described in our filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, as well as risks inherent in funding, developing and obtaining regulatory approvals of new, commercially-viable and competitive products and treatments. In addition, forward-looking statements may also be adversely affected by general market factors, competitive product development, product availability, federal and state regulations and legislation, the regulatory process for new products and indications, manufacturing issues that may arise, patent positions and litigation, among other factors. The forward-looking statements contained in this press release speak only as of the date the statements were made, and we do not undertake any obligation to update forward-looking statements. We intend that all forward-looking statements be subject to the safe-harbor provisions of the PSLRA.

1 2 Next › Last »