Biomet Agrees to Increased $11.4 Billion Buyout Offer (Update4)

By Robert Simison and Elizabeth Lopatto

June 7 (Bloomberg) -- Biomet Inc., a maker of orthopedic implants, agreed to a sweetened $11.4 billion buyout offer from private equity firms after a lower bid was criticized by one of the biggest shareholders and an advisory firm.

The new $46-a-share proposal is 4.5 percent higher than the $44 that Blackstone Group LP, Kohlberg Kravis Roberts & Co., TPG, and the private-equity arm of Goldman Sachs Group Inc. had made. Biomet, based in Warsaw, Indiana, said in a statement today that it canceled a vote set for tomorrow on the old bid.

The buying group will start a tender offer by June 14, Biomet said. The increased bid may close a dispute over the company's value set off in December when Biomet accepted the equity group's $10.9 billion offer. Smith & Nephew Plc, Europe's biggest maker of orthopedic devices, said Biomet rejected its higher bid, and Institutional Shareholder Services recommended that investors vote against the transaction.