Symmetry Surgical, a subsidiary of orthopedic implants and
instruments maker
Symmetry Medical Inc.
(
SMA
) recently inked an exclusive agreement in Italy with
Biocommerciale Srl. Per the agreement, Biocomerciale will
distribute Symmetry's surgical instruments portfolio inclusive of
all brands under erstwhile Codman Surgical Instruments, Olsen
Medical and SSi.
Biocommerciale is driven to meet the demands of hospitals and
healthcare professionals in Italy. With experience of more than
30 years and distribution network linked with more than 1,000
hospitals, clinics and medical facilities in the Italian
marketplace, Biocommerciale is poised to drive sales of Symmetry
Surgical product portfolio.
Since Symmetry Medical's core Original Equipment Manufacturing
(OEM) Solutions business is facing declining capital spending and
procedural and pricing pressure from the weak global orthopedic
market, the company is focused on expanding its smaller Symmetry
Surgical business.
Earlier this month, Symmetry signed a distribution agreement with
a leading medical device distributor, MTG Medical Technologies
(MTG). Per the terms of the deal, MTG will distribute Symmetry
Surgical's surgical instruments product portfolio in Europe.
Earlier, in October, Symmetry Surgical had entered into a
distribution agreement with Canada-based AMT Electrosurgery Inc.
to distribute its entire portfolio of medical devices in Canada.
In June, Symmetry Surgical had completed a distribution agreement
with Japan Surgical Specialty (JSS) Corporation to sell its
products in the Japanese market. The company had also completed a
distribution agreement to directly distribute its offerings in
Australia and New Zealand.
With a clouded orthopedic space in the domestic market, the
distribution agreements might be an attempt to diversify the
company's geographical base by exploring offshore opportunities.
It should also enable Symmetry to gain a competitive edge against
larger players in the market who continue to improve supply
continuum.
In the third quarter 2012, Symmetry Surgical revenues jumped
136.1% on a year-over-year basis to gross $24.8 million. Growth
was primarily led by contributions from Codman and Olsen Medical
buyout (in 2011). The company's distribution efforts should
further boost revenues in the future.
Symmetry is the largest original equipment manufacturer (OEM) and
provider of implants and related surgical instruments and cases
to orthopedic devices manufacturers. Its major customers include
Johnson & Johnson
's (
JNJ
) DePuy,
Stryker
(
SYK
) and
Zimmer Holdings
(
ZMH
).
Symmetry currently retains a Zacks #2 Rank, which translates into
a short-term Buy rating. However, we maintain our long-term
'Neutral' recommendation on the stock.
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