Private equity major Advent International will buy a “significant” stake in Suven Pharmaceuticals Ltd from its promoter Jasti family and consider merging it with a peer in its portfolio, the Indian drugmaker said on Monday.
Suven did not specify a deal value or the stake Advent would acquire but said the private equity firm would also make an additional open offer for around 26% of the outstanding equity shares held by public shareholders
The Hyderabad-based company also said Advent intends to explore merging Suven with its wholly owned Cohance Lifesciences to build a company that specializes in active pharmaceutical ingredients as well as contract development and manufacturing businesses.
“(Advent’s) experience and resources will launch the next phase of growth for Suven… It will help us offer a broader set of services,” Suven Managing Director Venkateswarlu Jasti said in a statement.
As of last close, Suven had a market capitalization of 126 billion Indian rupees ($1.52 billion) with promoter Jasti Property and Equity Holdings Private Ltd owning 60% of the shares, according to data from Refinitiv. ($1 = 82.7800 Indian rupees) (Reporting by Nandan Mandayam in Bengaluru and Praveen Paramasivam in Chennai; Editing by Krishna Chandra Eluri)
