VALLEY FORGE, Pa. — AmerisourceBergen Corp. plans to sell AndersonBrecon, its contract packaging business, to an investor group led by Frazier Healthcare in a $308 million cash deal.
The agreement, announced Tuesday, marks the second divestiture by AmerisourceBergen within less than a week.
Last Thursday, the pharmaceutical distributor unveiled a deal to sell AmerisourceBergen Canada Corp. (ABCC), its Canadian pharmaceutical distribution business, to Canadian distributor Kohl & Frisch Ltd. for $80 million to $100 million.
The ABCC deal came just over a week after AmerisourceBergen entered a long-term strategic partnership with Walgreen Co. and Alliance Boots. Under that agreement, Walgreens and AmerisourceBergen plan to expand their current relationship beyond the specialty items distributed by AmerisourceBergen to a 10-year primary distribution agreement for branded and generic drugs. AmerisourceBergen also will get global supply-chain opportunities with the Walgreens-Alliance Boots joint venture, while Walgreens and Alliance Boots receive the right to buy an equity stake in AmerisourceBergen.
AmerisourceBergen said it expects the sale of AndersonBrecon to close in its fiscal 2013 third quarter ending June 30, pending customary closing conditions and regulatory reviews.
The company noted that it has been reporting AndersonBrecon’s operational results within its discontinued operations, and any gain on the sale of AndersonBrecon also would be recorded within discontinued operations upon the close of the transaction.
"We are pleased that AndersonBrecon will join well-established firms heavily invested in the health care services market, including the pharmaceutical contract packaging sector," AmerisourceBergen president and chief executive officer Steven Collis said in a statement. "This transaction will help ensure that AndersonBrecon will continue to thrive in the years ahead and allows AmerisourceBergen to focus on its distribution, specialty and manufacturer services businesses."
Frazier Healthcare, a Philadelphia-based investment and venture capital firm focusing on health care and biopharmaceuticals, said Tuesday that one of its portfolio companies, Packaging Coordinators Inc. (PCI), will combine with AndersonBrecon to offer services on a global customer scale. PCI provides pharmaceutical and biotechnology packaging services.
"We are extremely excited to add the complementary U.S. and European footprint of AndersonBrecon to the strength of PCI’s capabilities," stated PCI CEO Bill Mitchell. "This acquisition is a positive step in PCI’s growth strategy."
Nathan Every, Frazier Healthcare general partner and a PCI board member, commented, "We are pleased to merge two stellar players within the pharmaceutical and biotech packaging business and believe that the combined company will deliver industry-leading quality and service to our customers and a world-class environment for our employees."
