Watson Pharmaceuticals, Inc. recently announced the acquisition of the Actavis Group for EUR 4.25 billion. This new acquisition creates the world’s third largest generic pharmaceutical company, with anticipated pro forma combined 2012 revenues in excess of $8 billion. These two companies will join forces under the new global name – Actavis – effective in 2013.
Watson Pharmaceuticals, Inc. is a global, integrated specialty pharmaceutical company focused on developing, manufacturing and distributing generic, brand and biosimilar products. The new amalgamation will have more than 750 products marketed globally through operations in more than 60 countries. It holds a top 10 position in over 33 markets including the U.S., U.K., Canada, Australia, Nordics and Russia, and is also the fastest growing generic pharmaceutical company in Western Europe.
Watson funded the transaction through a combination of $1.8 billion in term loan borrowings and the issuance of $3.9 billion in senior unsecured notes. “Today we unite two powerful, profitable and rapidly growing companies into one exceptional global business. As a result of accelerated integration planning, we will immediately begin to maximize the exceptional financial and commercial value of this combination,” said Paul Bisaro, President and CEO of Watson.
Furthermore, the company will initiate a multi-year rebranding campaign for its facilities, operations and commercial presence, and will transition to trading under a new symbol on the New York Stock Exchange in 2013. “When we announced the proposed acquisition of Actavis in April 2012, we immediately instituted an extensive and accelerated review of our global brand position and naming equities,” said Paul Bisaro, President and CEO of Watson. “A pioneer at the dawn of the U.S. generic industry in 1984, the Watson corporate name was never registered globally. As we initiated our global expansion strategy in 2009, it became clear that we could not establish a single, unified market presence under the Watson brand.”
“With the acquisition complete, we now have the generic assets in place that will power our continued organic growth, and generate strong cash flow to support the rapid pay-down of debt, which will allow us to continue to focus on future investments to enhance all of our businesses, particularly our Global Brands and Biosimilars businesses. Watson plans to host Investor Day 2013 in January to provide a more comprehensive review of the combined business,” added Mr Bisaro.
In addition, Watson also announced the Global Generics management team. “Since the announcement of our intention to acquire Actavis, we have been working to ensure that we have the management structure in place to capitalize on the commercial momentum of this combined organization,” said Paul Bisaro, President and CEO of Watson.