Novartis To Divest Stake in Drug-Delivery Firm LTS Lohmann
The supervisory and management boards of LTS Lohmann Therapie-Systeme AG, a developer and manufacturer of transdermal drug-delivery systems and oral thin films, reports that the company’s three main shareholders, Novartis Holding AG and the investment firms dievini Hopp Biotech Holding GmbH & Co KG (Walldorf, Germany) and BWK GmbH (Stuttgart, Germany), have agreed to a deal by which will Novartis will divest its 43% stake in LTS and BWK will divest its 24% stake in LTS to dievini Hopp Biotech Holding. Small LTS shareholders will also receive an equal offer from dievini Hopp. The transaction, which requires regulatory approvals and is subject to other customary conditions, is expected to close this year.
Founded in 1984, LTS is based in Andernach, Germany and also has operations in West Caldwell, New Jersey. The company employs approximately 1500 people and has annual turnover of more than EUR 300 million ($406 million).
dievini Hopp Biotech Holding focuses on investments in the life sciences. Among its life-sciences holdings are CureVac, a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company, Novaliq GmbH, a drug-delivery company, and the biopharmaceutical company Agennix.
Source: LTS
