Medtronic PLC has announced it has agreed to acquire HeartWare International Inc. for $1.1 billion in cash.  According to the press release, the acquisition will expand Medtronic’s portfolio of diagnostic tools and treatments for heart failure.  The companies have said that they expect the deal to close during Medtronic’s second fiscal quarter, ending in late October.

HeartWare, a firm based in suburban Boston, creates minimally-invasive circulatory support technologies for the treatment of advanced heart failure. The HVAD^® System, HeartWare’s flagship product, is the first and most widely studied centrifugal ventricular assist device (VAD), designed to facilitate the heart’s blood-pumping function.  According to the HeartWare website, the HVAD System is the world’s smallest VAD, weighing only 160 grams, allowing for a less invasive implantation procedure and resulting in improved patient recovery times and outcomes.

Doug Godshall, HeartWare’s president and chief executive, said in a statement that the deal gives HeartWare “a unique opportunity to enhance growth in the mechanical circulatory support market.” Mike Coyle, executive vice president and president of the Cardiac and Vascular Group at Medtronic, stated:

“The team at HeartWare has established excellent relationships with its hospital customers and built a strong position and reputation in the marketplace.”

Medtronic estimates that the global VAD market is about $800 million now and is expected to grow by a percentage in the mid-to-high single digits in the current year and accelerate to a percentage in the high-single, low-double digits in the future.

Medtronic said that it did not expect to adjust its fiscal year 2017 revenue outlook or earnings as a result of the acquisition, and that it expected the deal to contribute to earnings in year three.

HeartWare is one of the two major VAD makers to be acquired within the last 12 months. Thoratec was acquired by St. Jude Medical for about $3.3 billion in October 2015. Abbott in turn agreed to acquire St. Jude for $25 billion in April of this year.