Smiths Group PLC (LON:SMIN) saw its shares tick higher on Wednesday as Sky News reported that the x-ray engineering firm is to abandon discussions over a £7bn merger of its medical division with ICU Medical Inc. (NASDAQ:ICUI).
The FTSE 100-listed group confirmed at the end of May that it was in very early stage discussions over the potential combination with ICU.
READ: Smiths Group up as it confirms “very early stage discussions” about potential merger of medical division with ICU
However, Sky News said at the time that the structure of any deal with ICU - which makes devices used in infusion therapy and oncology - had not been agreed and it was thought to be more likely to culminate in a joint venture rather than an outright sale by Smiths.
Since then, it added, the two firms have tabled a string of proposals about how a combination could work, with varying degrees of governance and management control being held by both.
ICU currently has a market value of £4.6bn, while Smiths Medical was likely to have been valued at more than £1.9bn.
The US-based company has a long track record of takeovers including the US$900mln purchase completed last year of Pfizer's Hospira Infusion Systems arm.
Sky News also noted that another US healthcare company, Baxter International Inc (NYSE:BAX) has also expressed interest in buying Smiths Medical, which is the company's largest unit.
In late afternoon trading, Smiths Group shares were 0.7% higher at 1,624p.