Teva stated Monday that it signed an agreement for the acquisition of
the US firm Biocraft(BCL). The value of the deal is estimated at $295
million, however it will be affected through an exchange of shares.
Biocraft's shareholders will receive 10.7% of Teva's shares, whose
market price is currently $42.25.
Biocraft shares are being traded on Wall Street at $13.62, however
the deal closed at a price 53% higher than the current market value, at
$20.86 per share. It should be noted that in order to affect the deal,
Teva will be forced to issue shares, therefore the deal was closed based
on Teva's value after money.
The deal is expected to close during Q2 '96. The controlling
shareholders in Biocraft, the Schneider family, who hold approximately
60% of Biocraft shares, have made a commitment to vote in favour of the
deal in the shareholders' meeting. Two of the family's representatives
will be nominated to Teva's Board of Directors after completion of the
deal, and the head of the family, Harold Schneider, will even play a
central role.
As a result of the deal, the Schneider family will receive 6-7% of
Teva stock, and will, therefore, become the largest single shareholder
in Teva. Today, the largest stock holders in Teva are Claridge, who
hold approximately 4% and Sammy Shimon who holds 3.3%. The rest of the
shareholders, including Eli Hurvitz, the General Manager, hold smaller
percentages of shares.
Biocraft is one of the leading generic medication manufacturers in
the US, with an annual sales volume of approximately $140 million. In
the past half year, Biocraft has posted a $2.7 million loss.
"The merge with Biocraft will create synergy with Lemmon Co at a
minimum volume of millions of dollars", estimates Dan Ziskind, Teva's
Financial Manager. According to him, as a result of the merger, Teva
will become one of the two largest generic drug manufacturers in the
US