Sonic Healthcare is selling its 85 per cent stake in German lab tech firm GLP Systems for about $130 million and will use the proceeds to pay down debt and make other acquisitions.
The ASX-listed medical diagnostics firm says US-based Abbott is buying the whole of GLP, whose cutting-edge automation system has so far been installed in eight Sonic labs in Australia, the UK and Germany.
"Sonic has determined that GLP's potential will be more fully realised in conjunction with a suitable partner in the IVD (in vitro diagnostics) equipment market, and that GLP is not core to Sonic's business," Sonic said in a statement.
Sonic's strong revenue growth in Europe helped boost its profits during the previous financial year.
The company's shares were down 1.28 per cent to $26.99 at 1110 AEST on Thursday amid a wider slump in the healthcare sector.
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