Henry Schein acquires majority stake in Brazilian distributor

Henry Schein Inc. has acquired a majority stake in a Brazilian distributor of veterinary products, the company announced Monday.

Financial terms were not disclosed. Shares of Henry Schein rose 1.4 percent to close Monday at $74.34. The stock is down about 5 percent in the past 12 months.

The Melville-based provider of health care products bought 60 percent of Abase, a family-owned company based in Jaguariúna in the state of São Paulo. Abase, founded in 1990, had 2017 revenue of about $27 million and sells pharmaceuticals, pet food and diagnostic equipment for the swine, poultry, bovine and companion-animal markets.

Henry Schein, whose 2016 revenue of $11.6 billion made it the largest publicly traded company on Long Island, said in a news release it expects the transaction to have no impact on its 2018 earnings per share, but to add to them afterward.

In January 2017 Henry Schein entered the South American animal health market with a 51 percent investment in Tecnew, a distributor of animal health products in the state of Rio de Janeiro with 2016 sales of about $24 million.

“This ownership investment strengthens our position in Brazil’s animal health market,” Stanley M. Bergman, chairman of the board and chief executive of Henry Schein, said in a statement.

The founder of Abase, Edison Baba, will retain a minority ownership position and continue to lead the business as managing director. The company has about 90 employees, including more than 45 in sales.

Henry Schein’s animal health business posted net sales of $3.3 billion in 2016. The company also sells supplies for offices of dentists and doctors.

By Ken Schachter

kenneth.schachter@newsday.comkschach

Ken Schachter covers corporate news, including technology and aerospace, and other business topics for Newsday. He has also worked at The Miami Herald and The Jerusalem Post.