Siemens Healthineers plans to retain ownership of its ultrasound division, according to a 29 June article by Reuters that quoted Siemens executives as reinforcing the company's commitment to the business.
The article quoted Siemens Healthineers chief financial officer (CFO) Jochen Schmitz as stating the company had no plans to sell the ultrasound division, and in fact was investing in the unit.
"There is no sale process for the ultrasound division," the Reuters article quoted Schmitz as saying. "We already repositioned the business at the end of last year and are investing heavily in it."
Rumors about the status of the ultrasound division within Siemens Healthineers have been swirling since April 2021. News reports at the time speculated that the company was planning to sell the business.
Furthermore, the Reuters article stated that some of the speculation may have been fueled by a statement by Siemens Healthineers CEO Bernd Montag, who noted that with sales of about 400 million euros ($418 million), the ultrasound division was one of Siemens' smaller units.
Siemens has a history in ultrasound dating back nearly 30 years. The company dramatically boosted its profile in the segment in 2000 when it acquired Acuson, a California-based developer of superpremium scanners. Siemens announced in 2020 that it was moving its global ultrasound headquarters from Mountain View, CA, where Acuson had been located, back to Issaquah, WA, the division's original home.