UPDATE: Dougherty & Company Downgrades ZOLL Medical to Sell

Dougherty & Company has published a research report on ZOLL Medical

and has downgraded the company from Buy to Sell after the announcement that the Asahi Kasei Corporation would acquire the company for $93/share. In the report, Dougherty & Company writes, "At $93/share, the transaction is valued at 3.9x ZOLL's TTM sales and approximately 24x TTM Adj. EBITDA. Our “Acquisition Valuation” table below includes additional valuation metrics related to the announced acquisition. In the past 24 months, acquisitions in the Med-Tech space have occurred at an average multiple of approximately 5x TTM sales and 25x TTM EBITDA. The cash tender, to purchase all outstanding shares of ZOLL's common stock, is expected to commence within 10 business days and remain open for a minimum of 20 business days. ZOLL's board has approved the deal, and barring another offer, we expect the transaction to close in the second quarter of 2012 following regulatory clearance. Following the merger, ZOLL, as a wholly owned subsidiary of the Asahi Kasei Group, will operate with its current management team and operations remaining intact." Dougherty & Company has raised the price target from $82 to $93 to reflect the offer on ZOLL Medical, which is currently trading up $17.72 from Friday's $75.10 closing price.