Merck signs definitive agreement to acquire Intermolecular

07-May-2019 - USA

Merck, has signed a definitive agreement to acquire Intermolecular Inc. through a subsidiary for $1.20 per share in an all cash transaction, representing an equity value of approximately $62 million. The acquisition has been unanimously approved by the Executive Board of Merck and by Intermolecular’s Board of Directors.

“Intermolecular’s unique capabilities in rapid materials screening, in combination with Merck’s R&D pipeline will allow us to offer our customers faster materials innovation and device integration, through parallel composition experiments with full performance testing and characterization,” said Kai Beckmann, member of the Merck Executive Board and CEO of Performance Materials. “We are excited to join forces with Intermolecular, and bring significant advantages to our customers compared to conventional materials R&D.”

“We are pleased to become an integral part of Merck’s leading electronic materials business and look forward to all of the new and exciting opportunities we see for our customers and employees. We believe our technology expertise is very complementary and creates a unique offering that will continue to shape the innovations of tomorrow,” said Chris Kramer, President and CEO of Intermolecular.

Intermolecular is a California-based company leading in advanced materials innovation. They possess application specific materials expertise, accelerated learning and experimentation platforms with powerful analytics infrastructure that perfectly complement Merck’s business and technology portfolio. Intermolecular’s fabrication and testing capabilities allow for material combinations to be tested directly within the specific target application. In comparison to conventional methods these capabilities translate to major time reductions in the development process, dramatically accelerated learning cycles and insights into novel material systems to provide customers with a unique service value. Intermolecular reported annual sales of $33.7 million in FY2018 and employs about 90 people.

The transaction is expected to close in the second half of 2019, subject to the approval of Intermolecular’s stockholders, regulatory clearances and the satisfaction of other customary closing conditions.

Merck will acquire Intermolecular through its subsidiary EMD Group Holding II, Inc.

https://www.chemeurope.com/en/news/1160900/merck-signs-definitive-agreement-to-acquire-intermolecular.html