Valeant Pharmaceuticals To Acquire AB Sanitas For $442.9 Million

Valeant Pharmaceuticals International Inc VRX announced its plans to acquire Lithuania-based AB Sanitas for around 314 million euros ($442.9 million) in cash. The transaction also includes 50 million euros of Sanitas debt. The deal is likely to immediately add to Valeant's results. The major shareholders of Sanitas have agreed to sell the 87.2% of the outstanding shares of Sanitas. After purchasing the controlling block of shares, Valeant would commence a mandatory tender offer to buy the remaining interest in Sanitas. "The acquisition of Sanitas should provide Valeant with an exciting opportunity to expand our European branded generics product portfolio with dermatology and hospital injectable compounds that have a strong track record of growth and profitability," said J. Michael Pearson, chairman and chief executive officer of Valeant. "With 80% of the Sanitas portfolio consisting of non-reimbursed products with limited exposure to government pricing pressures, Valeant will be in a key position to continue our expansion into Central and Eastern Europe." VRX shares dropped 2.58% to close at $48.24 yesterday.