Register for free to listen to this article
Listen with Speechify
0:00
2:00
JERUSALEM—Seeking a larger share of the pharmaceutical market in Spain, generic drug giant Teva Pharmaceutical Industries announced March 31 it will acquire Bentley Pharmaceuticals, a leading drug manufacturer in Europe, for $360 million.

The acquisition will take place following the spin-off of CPEX Pharmaceuticals Inc., Bentley's drug delivery business, a move Bentley announced Oct. 23, 2007. At closing, the acquisition will consist solely of Bentley's generic pharmaceutical operations.

Teva President and CEO Shlomo Yanai said the combined companies will enable Teva to capture a leading position in the fast-growing Spanish generic pharmaceutical market. TEVA Genericos Espanola SL has introduced more than 60 products targeted both to hospitals and pharmacies since 2004. Currently, the company is the fourth-largest generic company in Spain's hospital market. Once the companies are combined, Teva will offer the Spanish market more than 170 products and have more than 45 products pending generic product registrations.

"Spain was identified as one of our target markets in the strategic review we conducted last year," Yanai says. "We are extremely pleased that we will have Bentley's strong management and work force, complementing our existing management team, to support our growth strategy."

Bentley manufactures and markets a portfolio of approximately 130 pharmaceutical products in various dosages and strengths, as both branded generic and generic products, to physicians, pharmacists and hospitals. Bentley markets its products primarily in Spain, but also sells generic pharmaceuticals in other parts of the European Union. Bentley's generic pharmaceutical operations generated revenues of approximately $114 million for the year ended Dec. 31, 2007.

Bentley shareholders will receive approximately $15.02 per share in cash in the acquisition.

"By separately selling Bentley's generic operations while spinning off its drug delivery business, we believe that we are maximizing shareholder value," says Bentley Chairman and CEO James R. Murphy. "Becoming part of the world's leading generic pharmaceutical company—and gaining access to its extensive resources and expertise in generic R&D, manufacturing and marketing—will enable us to better serve our customers in bringing to market high quality and affordable generic pharmaceuticals."

The transaction is expected to close in the third quarter of 2008. Teva will fund the acquisition from its internal resources and expects that the acquisition of Bentley's generic pharmaceutical operations will become accretive within 12 months of closing. 

Related Topics

Published In

Loading Next Article...
Loading Next Article...
Subscribe to Newsletter

Subscribe to our eNewsletters

Stay connected with all of the latest from Drug Discovery News.

Subscribe

Sponsored

Gold circles with attached purple corkscrew shapes represent gold nanoparticles against a black background.

Driving gene therapy with nonviral vectors 

Learn why nonviral vectors are on the rise in gene therapy development.
A 3D digital illustration of a viral spike protein on a cell surface, surrounded by colorful, floating antibodies in the background

Milestone: Leapfrogging to quantitative, high throughput protein detection and analysis

Researchers continuously push the boundaries of what’s possible with protein analysis tools.
Blue cancer cells attached to a cellular surface against a bright blue background in a 3D rendering of a cancer infection.

Advancing immuno-oncology research with cellular assays

Explore critical insights into immunogenicity and immunotoxicity assays for cancer therapies.
Drug Discovery News November 2024 Issue
Latest IssueVolume 20 • Issue 6 • November 2024

November 2024

November 2024 Issue

Explore this issue