ZURICH, April 8 (Reuters) - Swiss drugmaker 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 percent 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 percent 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.
Novartis is increasing the number of its shares outstanding by 6.8 percent by issuing another 155 million new shares to help pay for the deal, Chief Financial Officer Jon Symonds said at the group's extraordinary general meeting in Basel.
Novartis had originally anticipated it would have to issue 212 million news shares. It will use 165 million shares for the Alcon deal.
Symonds said dilution of the Novartis shares would be reduced by share buybacks.
The value of the cash component was based on the 10-day volume weighted average dollar price of Novartis' share from March 24 until April 6, which was $54.6738.
At 0945 GMT, Novartis shares were trading 0.3 percent firmer at 51.30 Swiss francs ($56.24), while the European healthcare sector was 0.2 percent stronger.
(Reporting by Katie Reid; editing by Ben Hirschler) ($1=.9122 Swiss Franc) Keywords: NOVARTIS ALCON/ (Zurich newsroom +41.58.306.7336; fax +41.44.251.0476; zurich.newsroom@reuters.com) COPYRIGHT Copyright Thomson Reuters 2011. All rights reserved. The copying, republication or redistribution of Reuters News Content, including by framing or similar means, is expressly prohibited without the prior written consent of Thomson Reuters.
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 percent 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 percent 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.
Novartis is increasing the number of its shares outstanding by 6.8 percent by issuing another 155 million new shares to help pay for the deal, Chief Financial Officer Jon Symonds said at the group's extraordinary general meeting in Basel.
Novartis had originally anticipated it would have to issue 212 million news shares. It will use 165 million shares for the Alcon deal.
Symonds said dilution of the Novartis shares would be reduced by share buybacks.
The value of the cash component was based on the 10-day volume weighted average dollar price of Novartis' share from March 24 until April 6, which was $54.6738.
At 0945 GMT, Novartis shares were trading 0.3 percent firmer at 51.30 Swiss francs ($56.24), while the European healthcare sector was 0.2 percent stronger.
(Reporting by Katie Reid; editing by Ben Hirschler) ($1=.9122 Swiss Franc) Keywords: NOVARTIS ALCON/ (Zurich newsroom +41.58.306.7336; fax +41.44.251.0476; zurich.newsroom@reuters.com) COPYRIGHT Copyright Thomson Reuters 2011. All rights reserved. The copying, republication or redistribution of Reuters News Content, including by framing or similar means, is expressly prohibited without the prior written consent of Thomson Reuters.