Bergen Brunswig to Buy Ransdell Surgical

Bergen Brunswig Corp., the third-largest drug wholesaler in the U.S., agreed to buy closely held Ransdell Surgical Inc. for an undisclosed price to expand its sales of medical and surgical products. Bergen Brunswig, which had revenue of $11.7 billion last year, said it would buy Ransdell, which distributes products in Kentucky and Indiana, as well as Louisville-based Ransdell’s affiliate, Choice Systems Inc., a developer of inventory computer software. Orange-based Bergen Brunswig, like other large drug wholesalers, is expanding through small acquisitions after a federal judge in August blocked two big mergers that would have combined the four largest wholesalers into two. Cardinal Health Inc. was to purchase Bergen, and San Francisco-based McKesson Corp., the largest, was to acquire AmeriSource Health Corp. Louisville-based Ransdell had revenue of $58 million last year. Bergen shares fell 69 cents to close at $44.88 on the NYSE.