Aurobindo Pharma, a leading player in the active pharmaceutical ingredient and generic market, has issued a statement clarifying that reports of buying out Prague-based generic drugmaker Zentiva are 'premature', and no binding agreement has been made by company, according to a company filing issued on August 20.
Earlier today, The Economic Times had reported citing people familiar with the development that the pharma company is the frontrunner to acquire Zentiva from Advent International for $5-5.5 billion, or Rs 43,500-47,900 crore.
The shares of Aurobindo Pharma recovered from early lows soon after the statement was made public, though still lower by 3 percent in the trading session. So far in 2025, Aurobindo Pharma’s stock has declined by 21 percent, compared with a 2 percent modest rise in the benchmark Nifty 50 index.
"...at present, no binding agreement or definitive decision has been made by the Board of Directors of the Company in relation to the transaction referred to in the said article(s). Accordingly, the said news item is premature and should not be relied upon," the company filing said.
Aurobindo Pharma added that it 'regularly explores' various strategic opportunities, including potential acquisitions and partnerships, which can enhance shareholder value. "In the event of any definitive development requiring disclosure under the SEBI Listing Regulations, the Company will promptly make the necessary and timely announcements to the stock exchanges in accordance with applicable regulatory requirements," Aurobindo Pharma added.
At the said deal valuations, this would have emerged as the biggest acquisition by an Indian pharma player anywhere in the world, larger than Sun Pharma’s acquisition of Daiichi Sankyo’s stake in Ranbaxy or Biocon Biologics’ buyout of US-based Viatris.
Aurobindo Pharma's wholly-owned US subsidiary had in July agreed to acquire Lannett Company LLC, a complex generics player, for approximately Rs 2,185 crore, in order to boost its manufacturing presence in the US. These efforts align with the management's goal of diversifying the product portfolio to serve the US generics space more effectively.
A lot of the pharma companies see acquisitions as a way to boost manufacturing in the US, in order to avoid US President Trump's proposed tariffs on drugmakers, in order to get them to reduce prices and shift manufacturing on American soil. Aurobindo Pharma relies on the US for nearly 50% of its annual sales.
“We’ll be putting initially a small tariff on pharmaceuticals, but in one year - one and a half years, maximum - it’s going to go to 150% and then it’s going to go to 250% because we want pharmaceuticals made in our country,” Trump had recently said during an interview to CNBC International.
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