Novartis said in August that it plans to spin off its generics unit Sandoz to sharpen its focus on its patented prescription medicines.
Bloomberg | Bloomberg | Getty Images
Novartis has completed the spinoff of its generics and biosimilars business Sandoz, which is set to debut trading on the SIX Swiss Exchange on Wednesday.
The Swiss drugmaker initially announced intentions to spin off the business in August, offering stakeholders one Sandoz share for every five Novartis shares via a dividend-in-kind distribution.
Novartis on Wednesday said that the move enables the company to transform itself into a leading focused-innovative medicines company that targets sustained top and bottom line growth.
“This is a truly historic moment for Novartis and Sandoz, as we begin new chapters as independent companies,” Novartis CEO Vas Narasimhan said in a statement.
“With several consecutive quarters of sales growth, Sandoz starts out from a position of strength as a global leader in Generics and Biosimilars, and I am confident they are poised to deepen their impact on patients and society.”
Novartis also reiterated its full-year guidance, with sales expected to grow in a high single-digit percentage and with core operating income set to grow in the low double digits to mid-teens.
