Sep 25, 2024 - Business

Sanofi reportedly gets PE bids for consumer health unit

Dan Primack

an illustration of the bands of the french flag falling over like dominoes — Illustration: Tiffany Herring/Axios

French pharma giant Sanofi received binding offers for its consumer health business from private equity firms PAI Partners and Clayton Dubilier & Rice, with expectations that a deal would be worth at least €15 billion, per Bloomberg.

Why it matters: This would be the year's second-largest European private equity deal, behind KKR's deal for Telecom Italia assets, and largest in France.

Zoom in: Sanofi also would be the fourth major drugmaker to offload its consumer health unit, following spinoffs by J&J, GSK, and Pfizer.

It still could go the spinoff route, having run a dual process since announcing last October that it would review strategic options for the business.

The bottom line: The headline number is huge, but the private equity checks won't be. Both PAI and CD&R reportedly are lining up co-investors in the equity, would get a minority stake rollover from Sanofi, and have banks working on €10 billion debt packages.

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Sanofi reportedly gets PE bids for consumer health unit

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