European Union antitrust regulators will decide on U.S. medical device maker Zimmer's $13.4 billion bid for Biomet by March 11, a three-week extension from the previous deadline, the European Commission said on Friday. The EU executive opened last week an extensive probe into the deal, which would make Zimmer the second-largest seller of orthopaedic products in the world behind Johnson & Johnson .It voiced concerns on reduced competition in certain medical devices following the takeover. Analysts say Zimmer may counter such worries by selling units where the combined company would have a high market share.The Commission's new deadline versus a previous Feb. 16 was published on its website. It did not provide details for the move.
Johnson & Johnson is a holding company. The Company is engaged in the research and development, manufacture and sale of a broad range of products in the health care field. Shares of JNJ fell by 2.7% or $-2.83/share to $102.08. In the past year, the shares have traded as low as $86.09 and as high as $108.77. On average, 6562380 shares of JNJ exchange hands on a given day and today's volume is recorded at 10677273.
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