Elanco Animal Health and Bayer Animal Health are preparing for their $7.6 billion merger by divesting a number of products, the latest being Elanco’s Vecoxan scours treatment for $55 million to Merck Animal Health.
The sale of Vecoxan, Osurnia and Capstar by Elanco and Drontal and Profender by Bayer is designed to earn regulators’ approval of the merger, which is expected to close in mid-2020. Elanco reported receiving antitrust clearance in China, Turkey and Ukraine.
So far in 2020, Elanco and Bayer have agreed to sell:
- Vecoxan (diclazuril), an oral drench for the prevention and treatment of coccidiosis in calves and lambs, to Merck.
- Osurnia (florfenicol, terbinafine, betamethasone acetate), for the treatment of otitis externa in dogs, to Dechra Pharmaceuticals for $135 million.
- Capstar (nitenpyram), an over-the-counter flea treatment for cats and dogs, to PetIQ Inc. for $95 million.
- The European rights to Drontal and Profender to Vetoquinol SA for $140 million. Drontal (praziquantel/pyrantel pamoate) and Profender (emodepside/praziquantel) are dewormers for dogs and cats.
Proceeds from the sale of Vecoxan, Osurnia and Capstar will help Elanco cover its cash obligations to Bayer AG, Bayer Animal Health’s current owner.
“Holistically, the Bayer Animal Health transaction is developing better than we expected when we announced in August of 2019,” Elanco CEO Jeff Simmons said. “We are encouraged by the progress from a regulatory, financing and integration planning perspective, as well as Bayer’s underlying market positioning and performance.”
Elanco Animal Health, headquartered in Greenfield, Indiana, grew its product portfolio in 2019 with the $245 million takeover of Aratana Therapeutics. Among the additions were Galliprant (grapiprant tablets), an NSAID for canine osteoarthritis; Entyce (capromorelin oral solution), an appetite stimulant for dogs; and Nocita (bupivacaine liposome injectable suspension), a local anesthetic for post-operative pain relief in dogs and cats.
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