- Thinly traded Quidel (NASDAQ:QDEL -18.7%) is down on modestly higher volume, albeit on turnover of only 299K shares, in response to the news that Beckman has prevailed in a lawsuit related to the sale of test called B-type natriuretic peptide (BNP). The company owns exclusive rights to sell the test, called Triage BNP, on Beckman Coulter analyzers but Beckman wants to sell the test directly to its customers. The California court intends to enter an order allowing Beckman to do just that.
- Quidel says the litigation is broader that this one issue and it expects to ultimately prevail. The trial remains scheduled for August 30, 2019.
- The situation arose from Abbott's takeout of Alere more than a year ago. The BNP rights were in-licensed by BioSite Diagnostics in late 1996. BioSite was subsequently acquired by Alere (then d/b/a Inverness Medical Innovations). In order to satisfy antitrust concerns with the Abbott tie-up, Alere sold its Triage MeterPro and Triage BNP lines to Quidel.
- Quidel's Cardiac Immunoassay sales, which include Triage and Beckman BNP, accounted for 52% ($203.6M/$389.7) of 2018 ytd sales.
- Previously: Quidel down 14% on Beckman move to sell BNP assay directly (Nov. 27, 2017)