Endo Pharmaceuticals to buy Qualitest for US$1.2bn
Boosts generics business and strengthens core pain franchise
Endo Pharmaceuticals has agreed to buy US generic drugmaker Qualitest Pharmaceuticals from Apax Partners for about US$1.2bn, boosting its branded pharmaceuticals, generic drugs and devices and services businesses.
Endo said the cash acquisition would add about US$400m in annual sales and 40 cents to earnings per share excluding some items after closing.
Qualitest, the sixth-largest US generics company, has cGMP facilities with the ability to manufacture controlled substances, which make up approximately 40% of its product portfolio, and liquids, which account for roughly 17%.
The combined company will have revenues of about US$2bn and more than 3,000 employees.
“We believe that this transaction will accelerate and diversify our revenues and earnings streams, while also providing our partners in the industry with a wider range of products and services at multiple value points,” said David Holveck, president and chief executive of Endo.
“The transaction makes us a more comprehensive healthcare solutions provider.”
Marvin Samson, chairman and chief executive of Qualitest, added: “I am convinced that this combination will enable our management team and employees to accelerate the growth of our business and continue the important work we do here at Qualitest.”
Samson, along with Julie McHugh, Endo's chief operating officer, will lead an integration team.
Endo intends to retain Qualitest's facilities in Huntsville, Alabama and Charlotte, North Carolina, as well as its own facility in Westbury, New York.
The transaction is expected to close late in the fourth quarter of 2010.