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you searching for? Search . Barrons Stocks to Watch Valeant: Accentuate the Positive? Two analyst reports released last week consider the impact of Valeant's iNova sale. By Ben Levisohn June 12, 2017 3:02 p.m. ET Last Thursday, shares of Valeant Pharmaceuticals International (VRX) jumped 9% after the company announced that it had sold its iNova business for more than $900 million, with the proceeds set aside for paying down its debt. And with that, the analyst opinions started rolling in, with BMO glad to see Valeant "execute" but worried about its leverage and Wells Fargo also worried about Valeant's debt load. We couldn't keep up with them all, so we thought we'd throw up two more today. In a report from June 8, RBC's Douglas Miehm and Joel Hurren, who rate Valeant Market Perform with a $19 target price, contend that not only was iNova sold last week, but "more importantly, VRX has executed on its strategy again." They explain: Progress continues toward $5B in debt repayment by February 2018. Management continues to make progress towards its commitment to $5B of debt repayment by Feb/18. Following the iNova close (excl. Dendreon proceeds), VRX will have paid down ~$4.5B since Q1/16. Including Dendreon, VRX will have paid down ~$5.4B in debt by year-end 2017. We view this positively, particularly given recent investor concerns that management had stalled in many of its divestiture talks. Our year-end leverage is now ~7.25x and ~7.00x in 2017E and 2018E, respectively. In a note released on June 8, CFRA's Jeffrey Loo maintained his Buy rating on Valeant: We keep our 12-month target at $17 on below peers 4.25X our 2017 EPS estimate of $4.00. VRX agrees to sell iNova Pharmaceuticals to a company owned by Pacific Equity Partners and The Carlyle Group, for $930M. The deal, subject to approvals, is expected to close in H2 17. iNova markets prescription and over-the-counter products for weight management, pain management, cardiology, and colds, etc. in over 15 countries. VRX will use the proceeds to pay down debt. Along with its pending sale of Dendreon for $820M, VRX will be able to meet its goal of paying down $5B in debt by Shares of Valeant have gained 2.2% to $12.79 at 2:51 p.m. today.
