Novartis (NVS)

[MrBruce]

Novartis AG Seals Alcon, Inc. Deal With $463 Million Cash Payment-Reuters
Friday, 8 Apr 2011 05:55am EDT

Reuters reported that Novartis AG has finally sealed its $50.9 billion buy of Alcon Inc by paying the eyecare group's minority shareholders an extra $463 million in cash. Alcon minority shareholders are getting 2.9228 Novartis shares, up from the originally announced 2.8 as this includes a dividend adjustment, as well as $8.20 in cash per share, meaning that each shareholder gets $168 per Alcon share. Novartis spent pretty much all of last year trying to clinch 100% ownership of Alcon, but its original all paper offer of 2.8 shares for each Alcon share met stiff resistance from Alcon's Independent Director Committee, which repeatedly dismissed this bid as grossly inadequate. Novartis eventually sweetened its bid with a cash component last December to ensure the Alcon shareholders receive $168, the average price Novartis paid for Nestle's 77% stake in Alcon. Both Novartis and Alcon shareholders have now backed the merger, which Novartis is hoping will help it to diversify and give it protection against patent losses on big selling medicines such as blood pressure drug Diovan.