U.S. Army teams with Vascular Solutions

Vascular Solutions Inc. announced last week that it has entered into a cooperative research and development agreement with the U.S. Army to develop a freeze-dried plasma product for use in battlefield trauma treatment.

The Army will fund the development of the product, and Vascular Solutions will be in charge of development and manufacturing. Once the product meets regulatory approval, the Army will purchase the product through Vascular Solutions, and the Maple Grove company can then sell to other government agencies and market it for civilian use.

The company told analysts the product could represent $100 million in annual sales, but that the development and regulatory process could take five years. Ben Haynor, an analyst with Minneapolis-based Feltl and Co., wrote: "We see this agreement as yet another solid addition to VASC's already strong development pipeline."

Land O'Lakes outlook Improves

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"The outlook revision to stable reflects the company's improved earnings, lower-than-expected debt balances and better credit measures," said S&P credit analyst Chris Johnson.

Patrick Kennedy