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Myriad Genetics Inc. announced Tuesday it had acquired a California company as part of its effort to diversify its sources of revenue, which the Salt Lake City reported had increased a robust 37 percent in its fiscal second quarter.
The Salt Lake City company said it is buying Crescendo Bioscience Inc., a South San Francisco specialist in autoimmune diagnostics, for $270 million in cash, minus $25 million repayment of a loan.
Myriad CEO Pete Meldrum said Crescendo will become a stand-alone subsidiary and the deal won't affect the workforce in either company.
Crescendo develops and markets tests that helps medical providers decide on treatments for autoimmune and inflammatory diseases, with its current focus on rheumatoid arthritis, said President and CEO William Hagstrom.
Meldrum said the Crescendo acquisition will bring about $10 million a quarter more to current revenues and that its sales are growing rapidly. It and other recent acquisitions have helped the company to raise its 2013 financial guidance.
It now expects $740 million to $750 million in revenue for its fiscal year, up from the previous forecast of $700 million to $715 million.
"We have a terrific product pipeline," said Meldrum, pointing to prostrate cancer test for which the company expects to begin receiving Medicare reimbursement in the spring.
Myriad Genetics said its second fiscal quarter revenue increased 37 percent, while its net income rose 44 percent compared to the same period last year.
Earnings per share were 66 cents, an increase of 57 percent compared to the second quarter of 2013.
The company announced its results and the purchase after the close of markets. Its shares fell 24 cents Tuesday to close at $27.28, but it was up 15 percent in early after-hours trading.
Medicare said recently it will pay $1,438 when Myriad sequences the BRCA1 and BRCA2 genes that are associated with breast cancer. If given final approval, that rate would be drastically lower than the $2,795 that it had been receiving.
But Meldrum said the company's forecast already took into account the drop in those payments.
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Usana earnings
Usana Health Sciences said Tuesday 2013 marked the 11th consecutive year of record revenue.
The marketer of nutritional supplements and personal care products reported revenues of $718.2 million, while earnings per share rose to a record $5.56.
Usana also said its fourth quarter saw revenue of $186.3 million, an increase of 10.5 percent, with net earnings of $20.3 million for the quarter, up nearly 10 percent over the same period a year earlier.
The company's shares rose 71 cents or 1.23 percent to $58.33. It reported financial results after the bell.