Medtronic to acquire medical device company that treats end-stage renal disease

Medtronic plans to acquire a small medical device company that treats kidney disease with a minimally invasive interventional treatment.

Medtronic, which is based in Ireland but managed out of Fridley, said it would acquire Avenu Medical. It's the sixth small acquisition that Medtronic has made in 2020 to augment some of its business lines.

Terms of the transaction were not disclosed, but the deal is expected to close in October, the company said earlier this week.

Avenu Medical is a privately held company based in San Juan Capistrano, Calif. It makes a minimally invasive system that treats patients with end stage renal disease.

"Medtronic's acquisition of Avenu aligns directly with our vision of bringing less invasive, endovascular solutions to patients requiring durable vascular access," said Avenu Medical's president and chief executive, Mark Ritchart, in a news release. "With Medtronic's extensive market presence, clinical leadership, and market development expertise, coupled with Avenu's customer-focused team and innovative technology, we are confident that together, we can drive awareness and adoption of this technology globally."

The company's Ellipsys Vascular Access System is an endovascular approach to create arteriovenous (AV) fistula for patients with end-stage renal disease undergoing dialysis.

In the procedure using the Ellipsys Vascular System, a catheter is inserted into a patient's arm and guided by ultrasound to join a vein and artery into an AV fistula. The wider and stronger blood vessel then can be used in kidney dialysis treatment.

The traditional alternative is open surgery, but the Avenu process can be done in a hospital outpatient department, ambulatory surgery center or physician's office.

"AV fistulae are like lifelines to patients undergoing dialysis. Until recently, the only option to create a fistula was through invasive surgery, which is associated with high failure rates," said Dr. Jeffrey Hull, director of the Richmond Vascular Center and co-founder of Avenu Medical in a news release. "The Ellipsys system has shown durable outcomes out to two years and has the ability to shorten procedure times and potentially reduce costs."

In 2020, Medtronic has shown a preference for deals that augment existing businesses rather than deals to enter new markets.

In August, Medtronic announced the acquisition of San Diego-based Companion Medical, which makes a smart insulin pen.

In July, it announced the acquisition of a French company, Medicrea, that makes products for spinal surgery.

Earlier this year, it announced the acquisition of Bloomington, Ind., company Stimgenics LLC, that makes a spinal cord stimulation device used to treat chronic back pain.

Robbie Marcus, an analyst for JPMorgan, wrote in a note to investors on Sept. 28 that he expects to hear more about Medtronic's mergers-and-acquisition strategy at an analyst-day event on Oct. 14.

"The company is in a strong financial position to act on tuck-in acquisitions going forward, a strategy we expect the company to favor over targeting larger-sized deals," Marcus wrote.

In early March, Medtronic's shares were down almost 35% but shares have recovered and are now down 8.5% year-to-date.

Patrick Kennedy • 612-673-7926