Fresenius Kabi Acquires Merck KGaA’s Biosimilars Business and US-Based Akorn

Fresenius Kabi has agreed to acquire Akorn, a United States-based manufacturer and marketer of prescription and over-the-counter pharmaceutical products, for $34 per share equivalent to $4.3 billion, plus approximately $450 million of net debt, the company announced on April 24, 2017. The company also announced that it would acquire Merck KGaA’s biosimilars business, which is focused on oncology and autoimmune diseases, and includes a team of more than 70 employees located in Aubonne and Vevey, Switzerland.

Akorn produces and markets, almost exclusively in the US, a portfolio of injectables, topical creams, ointments and gels, sterile ophthalmics, oral liquids, otic solutions (for the ear), nasal sprays, and respiratory drugs. The company employs more than 2000 people, and has three R&D centers and five manufacturing facilities in the US, Switzerland, and India. The US headquarters for Akorn and Fresenius Kabi are in close proximity in Northern Illinois. Mid-term, the acquisition is expected to create cost and growth synergies of approximately $100 million per annum before tax. Fresenius Kabi expects a progressive ramp-up of those synergies that will be achieved by integrating and modernizing Akorn’s production network and by combining other functions.

“Akorn is an excellent strategic fit for Fresenius Kabi. The company’s product portfolio is highly complementary to our well-developed generics business,” said Stephan Sturm, CEO of Fresenius, in a press release. “The simultaneous entry into the biosimilars business is the right step into the right direction at the right time. The acquired biosimilars assets are an attractive opportunity for Fresenius Kabi to enter this strongly growing and highly profitable segment. Both acquisitions are milestones on Fresenius Kabi’s growth path for this decade and beyond.”