What happened?
On Thursday, May 17, 2024, GSK announced its plans to sell an estimated 385 million Haleon shares, representing its final 4.2% stake that it held in its former consumer goods division.
Today, the British pharma giant has made good of its intentions.
GSK has confirmed the sale of its remaining stake in Haleon for £1.25 billion ($1.58 billion), thereby concluding its gradual divestment of shares in the company established through a joint venture with Pfizer in 2019.
The sale of the shares was at a discount of approximately 2.5% of Haleon’s closing price of 332.4 pence on Thursday.
RELATED: Pfizer Expected To Offload £2 billion Worth Of Haleon Shares (africanpharmaceuticalreview.com)
Background
In 2019, GSK and Pfizer merged their consumer healthcare divisions to create Haleon. Two years later, in July 2022, both parent companies still held substantial stakes following the group’s separation and initial public offering.
Earlier this year, Pfizer highlighted its plans to offload 630 million shares, a move intended to raise £2 billion.
In its part, GSK, since July 2022, has progressively reduced its stake from the initial 12.94%, selling 810 million shares to a 4.2% stake by January 2024. And now it is finally selling its final claim.
“GSK’s exit of its position in Haleon is consistent with its previous commitments to monetise its holding in a disciplined manner,”
GSK
Bigger picture
The divestiture will enable GSK to enhance its concentration on vaccines, cancer, and infectious diseases, aligning with CEO Emma Walmsley’s primary emphasis to bolster earnings at the pharmaceutical company within its existing strategy.
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