Abbott sells former Solvay flu-vaccine business
Abbott Laboratories is seeking a buyer for the flu-vaccine business it picked up in its recent purchase of Solvay SA's pharmaceutical unit. The deal could be worth €500 million.
Abbott kicked off the auction last week, sending marketing materials to a handful of large health-care companies, a person familiar with the matter said.
The former Solvay business, which will have about €200 million in sales this year and is profitable, is expected to draw interest from a range of heavyweights such as GlaxoSmithKline PLC and AstraZeneca PLC, both of the U.K. An AstraZeneca spokesman declined to comment. A Glaxo spokesman couldn't be reached.
An Abbott spokeswoman said "we're now exploring the option to potentially sell Solvay's vaccine business" and declined further comment.
Source: Wall Street Journal