PHARMACEUTICAL INDUSTRY

GENERIC MANUFACTURERS

Teva acquires Ratiopharm

Berlin - The Israeli generic drug company Teva acquires German manufacturer Ratiopharm. The purchase price for Germany's second largest generics producer and the sixth largest generic drug company worldwide is 3.625 billion euros. The transaction is subject to certain conditions including relevant regulatory approvals. On a pro forma basis, the combined company would have had 2009 revenues of 16.2 billion US dollars. Teva expects to complete the transaction by year-end 2010.

The acquisition will position Teva as the leading generic pharmaceutical company in Europe, increasing its European business from sales of 3.3 billion dollars in 2009 to joint pro forma sales of 5.2 billion dollars. Last year, with sales of 4.3 billion dollars Sandoz of Swiss' manufacturer Novartis was leading generic manufacturer in Europe.

Ratiopharm reported worldwide 2009 revenues of 1.6 billion euros. The combined entity will have 40,000 employees worldwide, of which 18,000 will be based in Europe. The German headquarters site for the combined entity will be located in Ulm, Ratiopharm's current headquarters.

In German pharmacies, Sandoz generated estimated sales of 1.6 billion euros. Ratiopharm reported sales of around 1 billion euros, Stada of 600 million euros. The leadership will not change, since Teva only had sales of around 160 millionen euros.

According to Teva, the combined entity will hold the leading market position in 10 European markets, including key markets such as the UK, Hungary, Italy, Spain, Portugal and the Netherlands as well as a top three ranking in 17 countries, including Germany, Poland, France and the Czech Republic. In addition, the transaction will nearly double Teva's sales in Canada.

Commenting the transaction, Teva-CEO Shlomo Yanai said: "This is an important acquisition for Teva. This transaction is perfectly aligned with our long-term strategy in which Europe is an important pillar and growth driver.“ Ludwig Merckle, the representative of Ratiopharm's family owner said: "The separation of ratiopharm is a painful step for us as the founding family. Taking this as given, I am confident that this is a good solution.“

Related topics: Teva behind plan in Europe
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Patrick Hollstein, Thu, March 18, 2010 03:04pm CET