Hisamitsu to Go Private through 390-B.-Yen MBO

Tokyo, Jan. 7 (Jiji Press)--Japan’s Hisamitsu Pharmaceutical Co. has said it will go private through a management buyout scheme worth about 390 billion yen.

According to Hisamitsu’s announcement Tuesday, an asset management company controlled by its president and CEO, Kazuhide Nakatomi, who is from the drugmaker’s founding family, plans to buy all outstanding Hisamitsu shares, at 6,082 yen apiece, through a tender offer running from Wednesday to Feb. 19.

Hisamitsu, known mainly for its Salonpas pain relief patches, is listed on the Tokyo Stock Exchange’s Prime section and other exchanges in Japan. It will be delisted following the completion of the tender offer.

By going private, Hisamitsu aims to increase its management flexibility in the face of intensifying competition in the domestic market for patch products, its mainline items, and to promote investment to expand its operations in overseas markets, such as other Asian countries and the United States.

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