CapVest Partners has agreed to acquire a majority stake in Stada Arzneimittel AG, buying control of the German pharmaceuticals group from existing private equity owners Bain Capital and Cinven, who will retain a minority interest in the business.
While financial terms of the transaction have not been disclosed, the deal reportedly values Stada at around €10bn including debt, making it one of Europe’s largest private equity exits this year. The transaction comes after Bain and Cinven considered an IPO for Stada, but revived sale talks as market volatility delayed listing plans.
Bain and Cinven originally acquired Stada in 2017 for €5.3bn, taking control of one of Europe’s last independent generics makers.
During their ownership, Cinven and Bain Capital supported Stada to successfully execute more than 25 targeted acquisitions, expanding its footprint and further strengthening its market position across Europe and beyond. Key acquisitions included: Johnson & Johnson’s Nizoral brand; Walmark; a portfolio of GlaxoSmithKline’s consumer healthcare brands; and a portfolio of Sanofi’s European consumer healthcare brands.
Today, Stada generates revenues of more than €4.2bn and expects adjusted EBITDA of up to €990m this year.
Jefferies and Rothschild & Co are acting as lead M&A advisors on the transaction. In addition, Bain and Cinven were advised on the transaction by Morgan Stanley, JP Morgan, Deutsche Bank and Goldman Sachs in addition to their role as global IPO coordinators. Further advisors included Kirkland & Ellis, EY, BCG, A&M and ERM.
