NEW YORK (GenomeWeb) – Thermo Fisher Scientific said today that its board of directors has authorized the repurchase of $2 billion worth of shares of the firm's common stock, either in the open market or in negotiated transactions. The new authorization has no expiration date.
In July of 2016, the board had authorized the repurchase of $1.5 billion worth of shares, with $250 million remaining, which the company plans to deplete later this year.
Separately, Thermo Fisher said today that it has signed a definitive agreement to acquire Becton Dickinson's Advanced Bioprocessing business for an undisclosed amount.
The business, which has annual revenues of about $100 million, offers technical services as well as peptones for cell culture media used in biopharmaceutical applications. It will be integrated into Thermo Fisher's Life Sciences Solutions segment.
"The addition of these new capabilities will complement our bioproduction offering and strengthen our ability to serve this rapidly growing market from development to large-scale production," said Mark Stevenson, Thermo Fisher's executive vice president and COO, in a statement.
The acquisition is subject to customary closing conditions and is expected to close in early 2019.