Drug major Cipla on Wednesday said it will acquire domestic pharma company Meditab Specialties for Rs 133.35 crore and also announced a special dividend of 80 paise per share to mark its 75th anniversary.
The company’s board, in a meeting held today, gave its nod to acquire “Meditab Specialties Pvt Ltd for an aggregate consideration of Rs 133.35 crore,” Cipla said in a filing to the stock exchanges.
However, following the announcement, shares of Cipla reacted sharply and declined by 2.63 per cent to close at Rs 308.90 on the Bombay Stock Exchange.
Meditab has small to mid-sized formulation-making facilities at multiple locations. Entities controlled by relatives of the promoters are major shareholders in Meditab.
Through the acquisition, Cipla will be able to expand the company’s API, it said.
The company will also get the benefit of additional business opportunities in Africa, it added.
The aggregate consideration for this acquisition was determined on the basis of the valuation report provided by Grant Thornton and a fairness opinion provided by Kotak Mahindra Capital.
To commemorate the company’s 75th anniversary, Cipla has declared a special interim dividend of 80 paise on shares of Rs. 2 face value for the financial year ending March 31, 2011.
The total payout inclusive of dividend tax would aggregate to about Rs 75 crore, it added.
