Yesterday morning, Osprey Medical Inc (ASX: OSP) announced a strategic alliance with US giant GE Healthcare. The Osprey share price started trade yesterday strongly in response to the news before retreating to 4.4 cents per share at Thursday's close.
What did Osprey announce?
Under the new agreement, GE Healthcare will exclusively distribute Osprey's products in Europe, Asia, Russia, Turkey, the Middle East, Africa and Central Asia.
The announcement reports that Osprey's DyeVert contrast minimisation devices will complement GE Healthcare's X-ray contrast media. Together, the technology will assist doctors in addressing the rising problem of acute kidney injury (AKI) following interventional coronary angiograms in patients with chronic kidney disease.
Osprey's technology is the only FDA-cleared medical device approved for reducing patient contrast exposure.
The 4-year agreement will see GE Healthcare commercialise Osprey's DyeVert portfolio. On average, the DyeVert technology reduces the amount of contrast that reaches the kidney by 40%, without reducing the image quality.
A word from management
In regard to the new alliance, Osprey CEO Mike McCormick said:
We are pleased to be partnering with GE Healthcare to be commercialising our products in global markets to address the rising problem of AKI following heart imaging procedures in patients with poor kidney function.
CEO of GE Healthcare's pharmaceutical diagnostics business Kevin O'Neill stated:
GE Healthcare and Osprey share a similar goal in improving patient outcomes. Both our product portfolios and educational efforts, which are aligned wit cardiology guidelines for AKI minimisation, offer interventional cardiologists the opportunity to safely image patients by reducing the risk of AKI.
Quarterly report highlights
On Tuesday, Osprey released its quarterly cash flow report for the period ending 30 June 2020.
The company reported a successful capital raising of $12.8 million from its entitlement offer and shortfall placement, and an additional $1.9 million from the US Government in the form of a pandemic recovery loan, a COVID-19 relief program for small US-based companies.
Additionally, Osprey reported a 7% fall in unit sales, due to COVID-19's impact on its worldwide heart procedures. However, as at 30 June, the company still maintained a cash balance of $14 million.
About the Osprey share price
After a strong initial start to the day on Thursday, rising more than 6%, Osprey's share price retreated.
The stock closed the day flat, trading for 4.4 cents, where it remains at the time of writing. Year-to-date, the Osprey share price is up 46.7%.
