Phillip Isakpa
- Blackstone to take over Takeda’s consumer healthcare business
- Takeda values consumer unit at £1.75bn
- Deal to boost Takeda net profit by £760m
Blackstone, the £48.75 billion valued American multinational private equity and alternative investment management and financial services company with a price earnings ratio of 48.60, took its acquisitive appetite Monday to Japanese Takeda Pharmaceutical Company after it had earlier this month spoken of plans to acquire Ancestry.com for £3.59 billion.
It announced that an agreement has been signed that will enable it buy the consumer healthcare business of the pharmaceutical company.
When the deal is concluded and the consumer business is excised, Takeda said it would turn its focus wholly to rare diseases and developing drugs that will address unmet medical needs.
The shares of Blackstone did not immediately respond encouragingly in early trading on Monday as the shares were trading at £40.72 per share. A tracking of its performance shows that amid COVID-19 impact on global economic activities, Blackstone had tanked to £27.55 per share in March. A recovery of 50 percent has now brought the company’s per-share price close to what it was when the year opened.
Takeda sees unit worth £1.75 billion
The Japanese drug maker has for some time been working to reduce its over the counter assets through a divestment programme, while the Blackstone deal is seen as being aimed at minimising its debt, after the 2019 acquisition of Shire plc for £45 billion, Invezz reported.
Christophe Weber, chief executive officer of Takeda said “My responsibility is to make sure that we don’t destroy value (for OTV businesses) but create value, and to create value we need to grow businesses and it’s not good to keep business and not invest sufficiently into that.”
The price Blackstone is paying for taking the consumer healthcare business of Takeda under its wings has not been disclosed, although Takeda says it values that business at £1.75 billion, while admitting that the actual price of the acquisition will be based on several factors, including its debt.
Deal to boost Takeda net profit by £760m
Competition to own the Takeda consumer healthcare unit was fierce as there were other prominent names in the fray, including CVC Capital Partners, Bain Capital, and Taisho Pharmaceutical Holdings, showing interest in acquiring Takeda’s consumer healthcare unit.
According Invezz, Blackstone had only in late June showed interest in owning facilities where TV and films are produced.
Having signed the deal, all parties will now work to see to its completion by the end of March, 2021. It is also expected that the transaction will help lift Takeda’s net profit by as much as £760 million.
According to Blackstone, this acquisition will bring to two its Japanese acquisition, having earlier acquired Ayumi Pharmaceutical Corp in 2019 for £760 million. Ayumi Pharmaceutical is a specialist in anti-rheumatism drugs.
