Pharmaceuticals distributor and medical products supplier Cardinal Health (NYSE:CAH) plans to make $90 million in acquisitions this year to boost its business in China.Dublin, Ohio-based Cardinal entered the Chinese market with the $470 million acquisition in 2010 of Chinese drug distributor Yong Yu.Now, Cardinal is looking to make further acquisitions in the country to expand [...]

Despite its troubles related to the Riata and the Riata ST lead recalls, St. Jude Medical CEO Daniel Starks told analysts Wednesday that the company will gain a 1 percentage point market share in the global cardiac rhythm market in 2012. The company’s CRM segment includes implantable cardioverter defibrillator and pacemaker products.In discussing the company’s [...]

Next on tap for Meridian Bioscience‘s (NASDAQ:VIVO) illumigene molecular diagnostic testing platform is a test for Mycoplasma pneumonia, an infection of the lungs.The illumigene Mycoplasma test is currently in clinical trials, according to a statement from Meridian announcing the Cincinnati-area company’s first-quarter earnings. Meridian plans to launch three to four new illumigene tests per year, [...]

Meridian Bioscience (NASDAQ:VIVO) plans to launch up to four new tests from its illumigene molecular diagnostic testing platform over the next year.Cincinnati-area Meridian is betting big on the illumigene platform, which it says provides its hospital and laboratory customers with a simpler, cheaper option to test samples for certain types of bacteria without the [...]

Sterilization products maker STERIS (NYSE:STE) is experiencing a more slow and costly transition to a new version of its flagship sterilization system than the company expected.The company had earlier projected between 5,000 and 8,000 sales on the year of its new System 1E, a liquid chemical sterilizing system used by hospitals, surgical [...]

Pharmaceuticals distributor Cardinal Health (NYSE:CAH) reported increased, adjusted first-quarter earnings, but investors showed only modest enthusiasm as the company’s full-year outlook remained the same.Cardinal reported adjusted earnings from continuing operations of $256 million, or 73 cents per diluted share, compared with $231 million or 66 cents per diluted share a year earlier, according to a [...]

SurModics (NASDAQ:SRDX), a drug delivery and surface modification company, announced this week that it was cutting 9 percent of its workforce, which included the departure of its CFO, and closing a plant.It’s a major restructuring on the heels of another big cost-cutting move less than a year ago where it cut 13 percent of its [...]

In his debut earnings call with analysts Tuesday, Medtronic (NYSE:MDT) CEO Omar Ishrak repeatedly said that a singular focus on growth would be his top priority to transform the company whose operating results for the first fiscal quarter he described as “unsatisfactory.”Profits in the first fiscal quarter ended July 29 fell to $821 million from [...]

Stem cell therapy developer Athersys (NASDAQ:ATHX) plans to begin phase 2 clinical trials of its MultiStem therapy for stroke and heart attack patients by the end of the year.Moving ahead with its stroke therapy is key for Athersys because that application represents its biggest market. CEO Gil Van Bokkelen pegged the potential stroke market at [...]

Drug distributor Cardinal Health (NYSE: CAH) reported a 19 percent fourth-quarter increase in sales of generic drugs, an area that continues to be a strength for the company.Generics — as well as acquisitions that have allowed the company to sell more generics — contributed to a 9 percent increase in fourth-quarter revenue to $26.8 billion, [...]