Content about Acquisition

WOODCLIFF LAKE, N.J. — Par Pharmaceutical has bought rights to a generic drug for gastroesophageal reflux disease from Handa Pharmaceuticals, Par said.

Handa, based in Fremont, Calif., sold rights to the regulatory approval application it filed with the Food and Drug Administration for dexlansoprazole capsules, a generic version of Takeda's Dexilant, in the 60-mg strength.

DEERFIELD, Ill. — Takeda Pharmaceutical will acquire privately owned drug maker URL Pharma for $800 million, the companies said Wednesday.

Takeda announced that it would acquire Philadelphia-based URL through a U.S. subsidiary for the upfront payment plus future milestone payments. Takeda said it expected the acquisition to contribute "significantly" to its sales and profits starting in fiscal year 2013.

AUSTIN, Texas — Sensible Organics, a maker of organic personal care products and one of the first beauty care companies to receive the U.S. Department of Agriculture national organic certification, has announced that it will launch its Nourish Organic Food for Healthy Skin brand at Whole Foods stores nationwide.


Nourish is among the first personal care brands to offer 100% USDA certified organic formulations offered in distinctive scents made of The Nourish collection scents include fresh fig, almond vanilla, lavender mint and wild berries. 


NEW YORK — Forest Labs has bought rights to a drug used for high blood pressure that it had marketed with a Johnson & Johnson subsidiary, thus eliminating the need to pay future royalties.

Forest announced Monday that it had bought all U.S. and Canadian intellectual property related to Bystolic (nebivolol) for $357 million from Janssen Pharmaceutica NV on Friday.

JERUSALEM — Teva Pharmaceutical Industries has launched an authorized generic version of Cephalon's Provigil, used for conditions like shift work sleep disorder and narcolepsy, the company said Friday.

Teva acquired Cephalon for $6.8 billion in October 2011. An authorized generic is the branded drug marketed under its generic name at a reduced price.

Provigil had annual sales of about $1.1 billion, according to IMS Health.

WHAT IT MEANS AND WHY IT'S IMPORTANT — Former Walgreens' CEO Jeff Rein said profit pressure might cause Walgreens to think differently about acquisitions than it did in the past. The loss of Express Scripts patients (who are incidentally taking their prescriptions to the nearest Walgreens competitor), coupled with a significant generic wave through 2012 — moreso in the back half of the year — potentially could keep Walgreens from posting a profit through fiscal 2012. "Walgreens is in a real poor position here," Rein said.

VALLEY FORGE, Pa. — AmerisourceBergen on Tuesday announced that it has signed a definitive agreement to purchase World Courier Group, a privately held global specialty transportation and logistics provider for the biopharmaceutical industry, for $520 million in cash.

MUMBAI, India — A division of Pfizer is asserting that it incurred nearly $1 billion in damages related to the launch of generic versions of one of its drugs.

In a lawsuit filed in the U.S. District Court for the District of New Jersey against Sun Pharmaceutical Industries and Teva Pharmaceutical Industries, Wyeth Pharmaceuticals said it estimated that it suffered damages of $960 million from Sun's and Teva's launches of generic versions of the gastroesophageal reflux disease drug Protonix (pantoprazole).

BATTLE CREEK, Mich. — Kellogg's is fortifying its snacks business by purchasing Procter & Gamble's Pringles business for nearly $2.7 billion.

The companies expect to complete the transaction in the summer of 2012, pending necessary regulatory approvals.

The announcement follows last year's agreement between P&G and Diamond Foods through which Diamond Foods would acquire Pringles for $2.35 billion. The deal was delayed "to allow Diamond Foods to complete an accounting investigation."

PITTSBURGH — Mylan has completed its acquisition of two skin drugs from Valeant Pharmaceuticals, the generic drug maker said Monday.

Mylan announced that it had acquired the regulatory approval applications for generic clindamycin phosphate and benzoyl peroxide gel, a generic version of Valeant's BenzaClin, and a license to manufacture and market fluorouracil cream in the 5% strength, a version of Valeant's Efudex.

Ever wonder how the convenient care industry blossomed into what it is today? One could say a fortune cookie.

“I love Chinese food, and my kids always get me Chinese food for dinner on Mother’s Day. My Chinese fortune cookie said, when I opened [it]: ‘You will be offered the opportunity of a lifetime, say yes,’” explained Sandy Ryan, Walgreens’ Take Care Health Systems chief nurse practitioner officer and clinical advocate.

LONDON — PZ Cussons, a consumer products group in Europe, Asia and Africa, is expanding its beauty division with the acquisition of the Fudge hair care brand from Australia-based Sabre Group.

The brand and associated inventory are being acquired by PZ Cussons for 25.5 million pounds ($39.5 million). The transaction is expected to close by the end of January, following the satisfaction of certain regulatory obligations.