Under CEO Vas Narasimhan, Novartis has slimmed down what was a sprawling conglomerate spanning prescription and generic drugs, eye care and consumer healthcare. The drugmaker sold its stake in a consumer health joint venture with GlaxoSmithKline in 2018 and, a year later, spun off its eye care unit Alcon as a independent company.
Tuesday’s announcement of a strategic review for Sandoz, meanwhile, follows a failed bid by Novartis to sell about 300 of its products to India’s Aurobindo Pharma, a deal that was terminated after U.S. regulators refused to sign off.
“The review will explore all options, ranging from retaining the business to separation, in order to determine how to best maximize value for our shareholders,” Novartis said in a statement.
In a conference call, Narasimhan said the company would provide an update on progress “at the latest by the end of next year.” READ MORE
Ned Pagliarulo
Source: biopharmadive.com
Avivi joins Bayer fresh off a yearlong stint as chief marketing officer of Advance Auto Parts, which followed about three years spent as marketing chief of another auto parts company, Tenneco. Rounding out her nearly 30-year career in marketing are leadership roles at consumer goods giants Kimberly-Clark and Procter & Gamble.
Air Liquide S.A. (Paris) is continuing its development with the acquisition of Homecare activities in Belgium and the Netherlands. The two entities acquired in Belgium and the Netherlands support 10,000 patients living with respiratory insufficiency, sleep apnea syndrome or requiring infusion or nutrition treatments.
US-based Vertex Pharmaceuticals has agreed to pay approximately $4.9 billion in cash to acquire Alpine Immune Sciences, a compatriot biotechnology company focused on discovering and developing innovative, protein-based immunotherapies.
