Siemens Healthineers raises $2.8bn to fund Varian purchase

Siemens Healthineers raises $2.8bn to fund Varian purchase

Siemens Healthineers AG raised 2.34 billion euros ($2.8bn) selling new shares to help finance its purchase of Varian Medical Systems and chart a path toward joining Germany's bluechip DAX Index.

The company issued 53 million shares at 44.10 euros each, offering them exclusively to institutional investors via an accelerated bookbuilding process, it said in a statement.

 got enough orders to cover the private placement, with approximately 16 percent of the offer going to Qatar Investment Authority.

Siemens Healthineers agreed to buy Varian for about $16.4bn in cash last year, giving it a sizable market share in the rapidly growing field of cancer treatment. The deal was financed by a 15.2bn-euro bridge loan from parent Siemens AG. The company plans to use the funds from its share sale to replace part of that facility.

Siemens Healthineers' possible DAX inclusion has been a burning question for investors and analysts since the company was brought to market three years ago. Because of Siemens Healthineers' small free-share float - Siemens holds about 79 percent of the stock - it has been left out of the coveted index despite an almost 50bn-euro market capitalisation. Joining the DAX is a clear goal of chief executive officer Bernd Montag, and selling new shares may bolster the German