On Feb. 7, 2011, Danaher Corp. announced a merger agreement with Beckman Coulter whereby Danaher acquired Beckman by making a cash tender offer to acquire all of the outstanding shares of common stock of Beckman at a purchase price of $83.50 per share, for a total value of $6.8 billion, including debt assumed and net of cash acquired.

The deal was a 45% premium over Beckmans closing price on Dec. 9, when market speculation began regarding the sale of the company. Upon closing Beckman Coulter, became part of Danahers life sciences & diagnostics segment.