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| Share Name | Share Symbol | Market | Stock Type |
|---|---|---|---|
| Warner Chilcott | WCRX | London | Ordinary Share |
| Price Change | Price Change % | Share Price | Last Trade
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| 0.00 | 0.00% | - |
| Open Price | Low Price | High Price | Close Price | Previous Close |
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Posted at 03/11/2004 09:13 by matthu JPMorgan Group Adds Bain, Lee to Warner Chilcott Bid (Update1) Nov. 3 (Bloomberg) -- JPMorgan Chase & Co.'s and Credit Suisse First Boston's buyout units will add Bain Capital Partners and Thomas H. Lee Partners to the group buying U.K. drugmaker Warner Chilcott Plc for 1.62 billion pound ($2.98 billion). JPMorgan and Credit Suisse added Bain and Thomas Lee to the bid, which remains unchanged, JPMorgan said in a Regulatory News Service statement. JPMorgan offered 862 pence a share for the Craigavon, Northern Ireland-based company on Oct. 27, beating out groups led by Bain and Goldman Sachs Group Inc. Private equity firms are interested in Warner Chilcott, which makes birth-control pills such as Estrostep and Ovcon, because of its cash flow and low debt, say analysts, including ING Financial's Max Herrmann. Warner Chilcott said Oct. 27 that it cash flow of $249 million in the 12 months ended Sept. 30, and cut debt to $5.5 million from $253 million. Bain had led a group that included the Carlyle Group and Lee Partners, and had said it may bid. A group led by Goldman Sachs that included Blackstone Group LP, Kohlberg Kravis Roberts & Co. and Texas Pacific Group, made a bid of 837 pence, or 1.56 billion pounds, for Warner Chilcott, people familiar with the situation said on Oct. 25. On Oct. 28, JPMorgan said it was talking with Bain and Lee Partners about adding them to the bid. Shares of Warner Chilcott fell 1 penny, or 0.1 percent, to 864 pence yesterday in London. They've risen 21 percent this year. Management Stake Warner Chilcott Chairman John King and Chief Executive Officer Roger Boissonneault sold U.K. operations and now the company gets about 90 percent of sales from the U.S., the world's largest pharmaceutical market. Warner Chilcott, based southwest of Belfast, Northern Ireland, has around 800 employees in the U.S. and Puerto Rico, and 120 in the U.K. and Ireland. The company's shareholders are predominately U.K.-based. King owns about 7.7 percent of the company's shares, which would be worth about 124.8 million pounds at 862 pence a share, Bloomberg data says. Chief Financial Officer Geoffrey Elliott's 2.87 percent share would be valued at 46 million pounds. Company founder Allen McClay netted 97.2 million pounds in April by selling his 6.3 percent share of the company. McClay, who founded the company in 1968 and retired in 2001, has purchased several of the company's units. Breakup Fee Under the agreement with JPMorgan, Warner Chilcott would pay a breakup fee of 17 million pounds, or one percent of the value of the transaction, if it accepts a rival bid. Goldman's group, including Blackstone Group LP, Kohlberg Kravis Roberts & Co. and Texas Pacific Group made a bid of 837 pence, or 1.56 billion pounds, for Warner Chilcott, people familiar with the situation said Oct. 25. After taking the company private, JPMorgan may look to re- list the company at a higher price, Numis Securities analyst Brett Pollard said in an interview. Buyout firms change management or strategy at the businesses they acquire before selling them on within five years to other companies or to investors via an initial public offering. Warner Chilcott, founded in 1968, sells Estrostep, an oral contraceptive purchased from Pfizer Inc. in March 2003, and Sarafem, an antidepressant for severe premenstrual syndrome it bought from Eli Lilly & Co. in December 2002. Shares of the company, which changed its name from Galen Holdings Plc this year, had declined 9.4 percent between the start of the year and Sept. 17, the last trading day before Warner Chilcott said it had been approached. Warner Chilcott's fiscal fourth-quarter net income fell 21 percent to $26.8 million, or 14.5 cents a share, from $33.9 million, or 18.4 cents, because of amortization and exceptional bid costs, the company said Oct. 27. Sales rose 21 percent to $125 million. Sales of the Ovcon birth control pill rose 9.2 percent to $18.8 million in the fourth quarter, while Estrostep rose 7.5 percent to $16.3 million. Sales of the hormone therapy femhrt jumped 30 percent to $17.5 million. Revenue from Sarafem fell 37 percent to $16.6 million. |
Posted at 25/10/2004 22:52 by matthu from Aberration in values could boost Warner Chilcott By Robert Cole - October 26, 2004 THE "virtual" auction for Warner Chilcott, the Northern Irish drugs maker formerly known as Galen, is getting interesting. Yesterday the private equity arm of Goldman Sachs topped its own initial approach with an all-cash indicative offer of 837p a share - a 5 per cent premium to the bank's original proposal. The money men over at Goldman Sachs would dearly love shareholders to look upon this latest approach as a knockout offer. And in fairness to Goldman, the bid, if firmed up, would represent a very respectable 35 per cent premium to the level at which Warner's shares were trading before news of the bank's approach first flashed across dealing screens in September. Goldman's initial 800p-a-share offer was enough to tempt some long-term holders of the stock to take profits, including Elan, a rival Irish drugs maker, which dumped its 3.5 per cent stake in the company at 805p a share. The bank will be no doubt be hoping that remaining investors in the company will follow suit now that there is a little extra on the table. But that is to tell just half the story. There are at least two other bidders running a slide rule over the books and the prospect of a juicy auction livened up an otherwise dull day in the sector yesterday, pushing the shares 19p higher to 837½p. On the face of it, Warner is a tempting morsel to the private equity sector. The company prefers to buy in drugs rather than support a huge research and development spend and analysts are pencilling in earnings growth of around 15 per cent and sales growth of up to 17 per cent over the next five years. But the company's true worth lies in exploiting an aberration in the way healthcare companies are valued in London against New York. Warner is a straight arbitrage play. In London, the shares trade on a multiple of around 14 times 2004 earnings. A canny bank might be able to sell the shares to US investors at anything up to 20 times earnings. That would equate to a sterling equivalent of at least £12.75 a share. There is a very real risk that all three bidders might walk away from Warner, just as Barr Laboratories did last year. But with an easy US exit in sight, it is not unreasonable to expect a private equity bidder to see value at up to £10 a share. Hold |
Posted at 20/10/2004 06:31 by matthu from TimesonlineKKR to invest $3.5bn in Europe By Tom Bawden KOHLBERG Kravis Roberts is planning to raise $3.5 billion (£2 billion) to invest in European companies, as the buyout firm looks to exploit the opportunities outside its "saturated" American home market. KKR, best known for its $31 billion hostile takeover of RJR Nabisco in 1989, is sounding out potential investors and plans to begin formally fundraising next month. The fund would in effect give KKR more than $10 billion of buying power, since the firm typically funds about two thirds of each leveraged buyout using debt. The company, which is this week expected to table a £1.5 billion offer for Warner Chilcott, the pharmaceuticals group, is one of several US buyout firms that have Europe firmly in its sights. Blackstone, Texas Pacific, Hicks, Muse, Tate & Furst, and Carlyle are among the American private equity firms that are devoting billions of dollars to Europe, which they believe offers much better investment opportunities than the "mature" US market. KKR has been increasing the pressure on European companies ever since setting up its first dedicated fund for the region in 1999. In Europe's largest leveraged buyout to date, KKR bought Legrand, the French plugmaker, from Schneider Electric in December 2002. A month later, the firm was forced to confirm it was considering a bid for Safeway, the UK supermarket group, although it eventually decided not to make an offer. In June this year KKR narrowly missed out on buying the AA,, which was jointly acquired for £1.75 billion by CVC and Permira. The firm was also a serious contender for Four Seasons, Britain's largest nursing home chain, which was sold for £775 million in July. KKR, which retains a small stake in Willis after floating the UK insurance broker in 2001, has teamed up with Goldman Sachs Capital Partners to bid for Royal Dutch/Shell's liquefield petroleum gas business, which is valued at £1 billion. KKR will raise its new fund from financial institutions such as pension managers, insurance companies and banks, as well as wealthy individuals. Longstanding KKR investors, such as Oregon Public Employees Pension Fund and Washington State Investment Board, are expected to make commitments to the new fund. The new fund coincides with the departure of Ned Gilhuly, head of KKR's European investment team. Mr Gilhuly is returning to KKR's Menlo Park office in California after six years and his replacement in Europe has yet to be named. Johannes Huth and Todd Fisher, two London-based partners, are understood to be the prime contenders for the job. KKR will be competing for funds against firms such as Apax, BC Partners, CVC Capital Partners, Carlyle Group, PAI and Warburg Pincus as heavyweight buyout firms seek a record 42 billion (£29 billion) of new investment capital during the next 12 months, according to Thomson Venture Economics, the researcher. Since KKR was set up in 1976 by Henry Kravis, George Roberts and Jerome Kohlberg, the firm has invested about $120 billion in more than 110 companies. Mr Kravis and Mr Roberts, who are both in their 60s, remain at the company, although Mr Kohlberg has since left to set up Kohlberg & Co, a rival firm. |
Posted at 21/9/2004 09:14 by matthu from Venture firms bid for renamed Galen By Rosie Murray-West and James Moore (Filed: 21/09/2004) Warner Chilcott, the recently renamed Galen Holdings, said yesterday it had received a bid approach from a consortium of venture capitalists believed to be led by Goldman Sachs Capital Partners, pushing the shares up 97 to 745p. John King, the chairman of the niche pharmaceutical business, said the company was considering an indicative offer of 800p a share, or almost £1.5 billion. He did not name potential suitors, but it is understood that the consortium also includes The Blackstone Group and Texas Pacific. Goldman Sachs is believed to be advising the consortium. Warner Chilcott is focused in North America and on products for women. Its shares tumbled recently after worries over the safety of hormone replacement therapy and patent expiries. They reached 874p early this year, prompting analysts to suggest the board might reject an approach at this level. Shawn Manning, at Dresdner Kleinwort Wasserstein, said: "We believe a potential acquirer could pay anything upwards of 800p a share. "We believe the bid will be given serious consideration, particularly given the stock's recent poor performance. In addition, high counter-bids are possible from a US branded generics player already well-established in female health." Roger Boissoneault, the company's chief executive, is not involved in the deliberation over the bid approach. It is understood that he was not involved with the venture capitalists, although he might be at a later stage, so the board had considered it prudent to exclude him from discussions. Last year, the company received another takeover offer, believed to be from Barr Laboratories, which makes generic drugs. The indicative offer was at the same level as the current offer, but fell through after the news leaked out. from US groups make £1.5bn bid for Warner Chilcott By Stephen Foley 21 September 2004 Warner Chilcott, the Northern Ireland drug company which recently changed its name from Galen, is negotiating an 800p-a-share takeover by a consortium of US private equity groups. The company's shares jumped 15 per cent to 747p after it admitted it had received an all-cash approach which would value the women's healthcare specialist at £1.5bn. The board is yet to meet to discuss the offer but Roger Boissonneault, the chief executive, will step back from that discussion. He is likely to be asked to stay on to run Warner Chilcott in private hands. It is possible that John King, the executive chairman who stands to net £118m for his 8 per cent stake, and Geoffrey Elliott, the finance director, who holds 3 per cent, would continue as non-executives. The consortium of three private equity houses includes Blackstone, which was recently runner-up in the bidding war for Odeon cinemas and is also attempting to build a large private nursing homes business in the UK. The identities of the other two members remained unclear last night. Warner Chilcott's products, built up through a string of acquisitions in recent years, include hormone replacement therapies, oral contraceptives and acne treatments. Warner Chilcott was forced into an announcement after details of the talks leaked into the market and drove up the share price last week. It is the second time in the past year the company has attracted bid attention, receiving an indicative offer from Barr Laboratories, another specialist in oral contraceptives, which sent its shares up to 750p at one point. Some analysts were speculating yesterday that Barr and others would want to look again at the company now it is "in play" as a takeover target. Shawn Manning at Dresdner Kleinwort Wasserstein said: "Counter-bids at a higher price are possible from a US branded generics player already well established in female health, such as Teva, Mylan, Barr or Watson." The closing share price of 747p reflected scepticism over a bid war and Warner Chilcott's own warning that the bid is subject to conditions, and may finally be set at a lower price than 800p. It is believed the Blackstone consortium is hoping to engineer a financial restructuring at Warner Chilcott and float it quickly on the US stock market, where pharmaceuticals companies are typically valued more highly than by UK investors. The company's products generate cash but their prospects for significant sales growth have been fiercely debated in the City. Warner Chilcott considered moving its own listing to the US earlier this year in the hope of enjoying an improved valuation, but ruled out the idea because of likely resistance from its shareholders. Galen was founded in 1968 as a contract manufacturer and research partner for other drug companies. It turned itself into a speciality pharmaceuticals company in its own right through product acquisitions and the appointment of a large US salesforce. The key moment in its transformation was the acquisition of Warner Chilcott of the US in 2000, which brought in Mr Boissonneault as chief executive. No one was said to have been more disappointed when Barr Laboratories walked away from merger talks than Warner Chilcott'scombative executive chairman. After 25 years with the Northern Irish drug maker, John King is widely believed to be keen to cash in his 8 per cent shareholding, which could net him £118m. One analyst said: "He has a pad in France, a pad in Kildare and, reputedly, one of the fastest boats on the Mediterranean. Not unreasonably, he is fed up dealing with the complaints of shareholders and people like me." Mr King has cashed in an estimated £75m from selling shares over the past few years, and is paid half of his salary by Warner Chilcott's subsidiary in Bermuda. from US consortium offers £1.5bn for Warner Chilcott Heather Tomlinson Tuesday September 21, 2004 The Guardian Women's healthcare business Warner Chilcott has been approached with a £1.5bn cash offer by a consortium of American private equity companies, believed to include the Blackstone Group. The bid could bring executive chairman John King a £116m windfall and finance director Geoffrey Elliot £43m if it is successful, because both hold substantial stakes in the business after 36 years at the company between them. The bid approach was made in the past few days. The offer of 800p a share comes after interest from the American generic drugs group Barr Laboratories last year. The approach was made by several US private equity groups which are understood to be advised by Goldman Sachs. The Warner Chilcott board is being advised by Hoare Govett. Chief executive Roger Boissonneault is not involved in the discussions. He has not been approached by the bidding consortium yet, but the board has excluded him from the talks because he is likely to be approached by the buyers. Warner Chilcott, originally called Galen Holdings, has changed radically over the past few years. The original businesses have been sold to former chairman Dr Allen McClay, who has sold his stake in the company. It bought US company Warner Chilcott in 2000 and its brands are almost entirely the products of that acquisition. The Northern Ireland firm's shares rose 15% to 747p yesterday, short of the potential offer, because the City was sceptical that a deal would go through. One industry expert said Warner Chilcott faced fears about litigation, which could deter potential bidders. It makes contraceptive pills and hormone replacement therapy, both of which are subject to health scares. The company's board will meet shortly to discuss its response to the bid approach. "The board can confirm that they have received an approach from a consortium of private equity houses which may or may not lead to an offer, at an indicative cash price of 800p per share, being made for the entire issued share capital of Warner Chilcott," a company statement said. Although the bid is well above the previous market price for the firm, some analysts think it is undervalued. "We maintain our belief that Warner Chilcott is worth 1,000p per share," said research from investment bank Dresdner Kleinwort Wasserstein yesterday. "However, we believe the bid will be given serious consideration, particularly given the stock's recent poor performance." It touted drugs firms that are already in female healthcare as potential counter-bidders, including Teva, Mylan and Barr. |
Posted at 03/8/2004 05:41 by matthu from Times-OnlineA VICTORY in the American courts late on Friday lifted Warner Chilcott shares yesterday as traders showed relief over the drugmaker's successful defence of a key patent. Warner Chilcott, formerly known as Galen Holdings, saw off a challenge by Teva Pharmaceuticals, the generic drugs group, to its Sarafem treatment for premenstrual dysphoric disorder, a severe form of premenstrual syndrome. Warner Chilcott shares rose 29p to 629p as the resolution of the case reduced uncertainty over sales forecasts for the drug. Dresdner Kleinwort Wasserstein said that the ruling, which will bar Teva from launching its generic product until May 2008, should restore investor confidence and it reiterated its "buy" stance. However, Dr Jonathan Senior, an analyst for Evolution Beeson Gregory, said that any near-term upside in the share price would be small. He said the result was a hollow victory because sales and prescriptions of the product had disappointed, with current sales falling about 30 per cent short of annual targets. The wider market closed down, with the FTSE 250 off 5.8 points at 6,017.7. |
Posted at 20/7/2004 10:14 by silverfern Followed up my mails with a phone call to Jeff Smith , Investor Relations. Here's what he says: price fall is disappotiing, no fundamental reason for the price fall; last Qtr's results were good and it remains business as usual and they are happy with the level of business. The price has fallen on little volume. PR is in progress in regard to name change but everyone was advised; they routinely make presentations to institutions as part of the healthcare conference round and that program continues as normal. The price fall should not be as a result of name change.In my words, he did not say this but read the above, the share is oversold on the basis of trade, revenue and outlook. Looking at the price now, this could close in the blue today! |
Posted at 20/7/2004 10:01 by silverfern If I get a postive reply from Warner I will buy more but the problem of the small investor is of believing the company is sound and not resolving that belief to the reality share price- everything I know says this is cheap now, but what has prompted everyone else to sell? As I wrote WC earlier, it surely cannot be the case that fund holders sell stock just because the name of it has changed - or are they that dim? |
Posted at 20/7/2004 09:31 by samuri Very aggravating I agree, particularly after such good figures for March. Maybe there is a fear that the momentum cannot be sustained. The only answers I can suggest are:1. Pfizers warning (and another US pharma I think) last week could impact WCRX, as bulk of revenues now generated in US. 2. JP Morgan have reiterated an overweight stance on AstraZ ahead of their results with a target price of £32. This may have prompted investors to switch from WC to AZ. 3. Market generally continues to fall. From a charting point of view the RSI is now less than 19 indicating a very oversold position. Results for June quarter should be out mid Aug and one hopes for continued good performance with no surprises. |
Posted at 05/7/2004 01:34 by whitebicycle Mine was 380p, and at the time I didn't care what the dollar was doing. At the moment I think the management couldn't give a stuff what the likes of a small UK investor thinks, they are besotted with a NAS listing. I'm out fot the moment but would appreciate a bit more visibility for the grass roots rather than a statement about a transfer of power and a listing on Nasdaq. This is more about increasing the value of director share options than share price.I'me not convinced at the moment and would want to see some policy statement issued as to the future direction of the company and whether it intends to delist from the LSE. |
Posted at 02/7/2004 21:24 by chopsy Well it is worth watching carefully till it bottoms out (or selling or going short if you're brave enough). It looked like it might be going more horizontal just below 700, but now the downtrend has resumed again. Reasons for this?1. Off people's radar cos its GAL no more 2. Not on US investors radar yet 3. Now a dollar earner, it will go down in £ while the dollar slides. There is a risk the dollar will weaken further if China allows its currency a free float. On the other hand the fundamentals are very good so its push and pull. Time your entry carefully. |
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