Benzinga | Aug 13, 2020 08:34AM EDT

QIAGEN Says Will 'Continue Successful Growth Strategy Focused on Execution and Greater Value Creation' After Thermo Fisher Takeover Failed To Achieve 66.67% Acceptance; Says Will Move Forward With NeuMoDx Acquisition

* nder offer acceptance of 47% did not reach minimum threshold of 66.67%

* QIAGEN Supervisory Board and Managing Board respect the views of shareholders

* Focus on execution with strong outlook for 2020 and 2021, QIAGEN to continue strategy of creating value through Sample to Insight portfolio for growing molecular testing needs

* QIAGEN to move forward with full acquisition of NeuMoDx, adding versatile integrated molecular testing platforms to portfolio and gaining access to U.S. and other markets

* Ongoing commitment to support global response to coronavirus pandemic

QIAGEN N.V. (NYSE:QGEN, Frankfurt Prime Standard: QIA))))) today announced that it will continue to execute its successful growth strategy aiming to create significant value for shareholders and other stakeholders after the voluntary public takeover offer by Thermo Fisher Scientific, Inc. (NYSE:TMO) did not achieve the minimum 66.67% acceptance threshold from QIAGEN shareholders.

A total of 47% of the outstanding QIAGEN shares were tendered into the offer of EUR 43.00 per share at the expiry of the Acceptance Period on Monday, August 10, 2020, at Midnight Frankfurt time / 18:00 New York time. The amended business combination agreement has been terminated due to the acceptance threshold not having been met.

"We respect the decision of our shareholders and will now continue to execute our strategy to deliver growth and create greater value with our Sample to Insight portfolio that addresses growing molecular testing needs in the life sciences and molecular diagnostics," said Dr. H?kan, Bj?rklund, Chairman of the Supervisory Board of QIAGEN N.V.

"The magnitude and duration of the global coronavirus pandemic have proven the increasingly critical importance of molecular testing to society. QIAGEN's business prospects have improved significantly, as shown in our performance for the first half of 2020 and the strong outlook for the rest of this year and for 2021," said Thierry Bernard, Chief Executive Officer of QIAGEN N.V. "In light of the outcome, we will also move forward with our plans to fully acquire NeuMoDx, Inc., which is growing fast thanks to its unique offering of molecular diagnostic testing platforms along with a solution for coronavirus testing and an expanding range of assays in Europe, the U.S. and rest of the world. Our employees have demonstrated resilience and deep expertise in meeting the challenges of the pandemic, and will continue to play an essential role in building QIAGEN as a unique and differentiated leader in molecular testing through a commitment to execution on our goals."

Roland Sackers, Chief Financial Officer of QIAGEN N.V., added: "QIAGEN is moving forward from a position of strength with robust growth prospects, anchored by a differentiated portfolio and multiple new product launches in the pipeline. As we focus on greater value creation, QIAGEN builds on a disciplined capital allocation policy anchored by a healthy balance sheet to support investments into our business along with a commitment to increasing returns to shareholders."

In line with its long-term growth strategy, QIAGEN intends to continue implementing initiatives to accelerate the growth of its Sample to Insight portfolio, delivering efficiency and effectiveness, increasing the value of QIAGEN as an employer of choice and enhancing customer experience.

QIAGEN's growth strategy is anchored on these commercial initiatives:

* Support global response to the coronavirus pandemic: QIAGEN employees around the world are fully mobilized to address the urgent demand for testing solutions needed in the global response to the coronavirus pandemic. Sales growth of 14% in constant currency terms for the first half of 2020 reflected the significant demand for these products, supporting the outlook for growth trends in the second half of 2020 continuing into 2021. QIAGEN's initiatives focus on building the most comprehensive portfolio of solutions for COVID-19 testing. These include ramping up production of viral RNA extraction for use on QIAGEN's QIAcube, QIAsymphony and EZ1 platforms as well as third-party instruments; building up a range of PCR tests on the QIAstat-Dx and NeuMoDx systems that enable COVID-19 detection while analyzing samples at the same time for other respiratory infections; and delivering universal next-generation sequencing (NGS) solutions for use with any sequencer, in particular gene panels integrated with bioinformatics for analysis of the SARS-CoV-2 virus. QIAGEN is also scaling up production capacity for reagents sold to other companies for use in their own COVID-19 tests. New QIAGEN products in accelerated development include a serology test (assessing the body's immune response to the coronavirus via antibodies) and a rapid antigen test (detection of an active coronavirus infection), planned for launch in the second half of 2020.

* Strengthen excellence in sample technologies: QIAGEN plans to build on its market and technology leadership in sample technologies, a wide range of solutions to extract nucleic acids from biological samples. QIAGEN continues to roll out innovative sample technologies for liquid biopsies, sample and library preparation for next-generation sequencing (NGS) and metagenomics applications. Development initiatives include new products in response to the coronavirus pandemic, as well as innovations for customers in areas such as research, clinical healthcare and forensics that include new applications based on 96-well plates.

* Extend leadership in tuberculosis (TB) detection: Amid predictions that tuberculosis will make a resurgence due to the global disruption to testing initiatives, QIAGEN is implementing a strategy to accelerate the adoption of QuantiFERON-TB in the fight against this pandemic disease. TB is estimated to kill more than 1.5 million people annually. Sales in the first half of 2020 were disrupted by the coronavirus pandemic, but experienced accelerating trends in regions where quarantines and lockdown measures have been eased. QIAGEN's highly flexible laboratory automation solutions for QuantiFERON-TB Gold Plus -- anchored by partnerships with DiaSorin, Hamilton and Tecan -- are supporting the conversion from tuberculin skin tests to modern blood-based technology. Additionally, QIAGEN is advancing plans for the launch of QuantiFERON-TB Access (QFT Access), a new version of the gold-standard TB detection test dedicated and tailored to the needs of low-resource settings with a high disease burden of TB.

* Accelerate commercialization of NeuMoDx and QIAstat-Dx systems: QIAGEN intends to move forward with the acquisition of the remaining 80.1% stake in NeuMoDx Molecular, Inc. that it currently does not own. This transaction, which requires customary regulatory approvals and clearances, is expected to be completed for a purchase price of approximately $234 million. QIAGEN expects NeuMoDx to provide significant sales contributions in the future based on its differentiation as a rapid, integrated PCR-based platform that offers a dedicated COVID-19 test as well as an expanding menu of tests for other infectious diseases, such as a new multiplex test combining analysis for influenza, RSV (respiratory syncytial virus) and the SARS-CoV-2 virus, expected to be launched in the second half of 2020. QIAGEN currently does not consolidate in its financial statements the results of operations of NeuMoDx Molecular, Inc. Additional details on this proposed acquisition are planned to be disclosed when QIAGEN reports results for the third quarter and first nine months of 2020.

Additionally, QIAGEN plans to accelerate initiatives to support the expansion of the QIAstat-Dx syndromic testing platform, in particular initiatives to make significant investments to increase production capacity for system cartridges at sites in Hilden, Germany, and Barcelona, Spain, as well as expand the menu of tests on this platform for use in detecting various diseases.

* Enter digital PCR market with QIAcuity launch: Among the leading new product launches in development is QIAGEN's differentiated entry into digital PCR, a fast-growing market in genomic research. QIAcuity is a series of differentiated new platforms designed to make this technology more accessible and attractive to Life Sciences laboratories worldwide. QIAGEN has a growing pipeline of over 1,500 customer leads, and has increased production capacity in light of higher-than-expected demand.