Actavis to buy Warner Chilcott

Actavis Inc announced on May 20 it will acquire specialty pharmaceutical company Warner Chilcott plc in a deal worth an estimated $5 billion.

The companies will combine to create a business worth approximately $11 billion, which will develop and market both generic and branded products.

Actavis will take advantage of larger profit margins as it expands its branded drug portfolio with the acquisition of Warner Chilcott’s gastroenterology and dermatology businesses.

The transaction is hoped to make Actavis a serious competitor to larger pharmaceutical companies, and rank it the top 20 global specialty pharmaceutical companies in terms of sales.

“We have set as our strategic corporate objective to build a leading global specialty pharmaceutical company,” said Paul Bisaro, president and chief executive of Actavis.

The combination will support the launch of new products, particularly those in women’s health, including contraceptives, he added.

The new company is expected to be named ‘Actavic plc’, or a variant thereof, which will be incorporated in Ireland and led by the Actavis leadership team.

Earlier this month Actavis, which makes branded and generic drugs and biosimilars, rejected a takeover offer from US-based pharmaceutical company Mylan worth $15 billion.

Reuters reported the company had also put a potential deal with Canadian pharmaceutical company Valeant Pharmaceuticals International on hold.

Warner Chilcott specialises in developing treatments in the areas of gastroenterology, women's healthcare, dermatology and urology. Its headquarters are in Dublin.

The transaction is expected to be completed at the end of 2013.