REYKJAVIK, Iceland, Sept. 30, 2005 (PRIMEZONE) -- Actavis Group (ICEX:ACT), the international generic pharmaceutical company, today announces that it has acquired the generic business of the Hungarian pharmaceutical company, Keri Pharma. Financial details were not disclosed.Keri Pharma was founded in 1991 and specialises in the development, sales and marketing of generic pharmaceuticals in the central eastern European region. The majority of the Company's sales are in Hungary, but it also exports to Poland, Slovenia, Slovak Republic, Czech Republic and the Baltic states. The company employs around 80 people and has over 20 products on the market, with a further 23 in the pipeline. The portfolio consists mainly of Central nervous system (CNS), Cardiovascular and Rheumatology products. Keri has a strong business development unit while production is outsourced to third parties. Keri will launch the first two Actavis products this year, as a customer of Medis, Actavis' Third-party sales division. The Company's products are fully compliant with EU requirements, and now there is a possibility to launch some of these products into other Actavis markets.
The acquisition is not expected to have any material effect on Actavis' financial results in 2005.
Commenting on the acquisition, Robert Wessman, President and CEO said: "In recent months, Actavis has been strengthening its presence in central & eastern Europe through strategic acquisitions. This is our first step into the Hungarian market, where Actavis already holds 12 Marketing Authorisations, which can now be launched into the market. This acquisition will reinforce our position and our strategy to register and launch Actavis products into new markets."
Notes to editors:
Actavis Group is an international generic pharmaceutical company, founded in 1956, specialising in the development, manufacture and sale of generic pharmaceuticals. Headquartered in Iceland, Actavis employs around 7,000 people worldwide and has operations in 28 countries with development and manufacturing facilities in Iceland, Bulgaria, Turkey, Malta, Serbia and the USA. Information in this press release may contain forward-looking statements with respect to the financial condition, results of operations and businesses of Actavis. By their nature, forward-looking statements and forecasts involve risk and uncertainty because they relate to events and depend on circumstances that will occur in the future. There are a number of factors that could cause actual results and developments to differ materially from that expressed or implied by these forward-looking statements. These factors include, among other things, exchange rate fluctuations, the risk that research and development will not yield new products that achieve commercial success, the impact of competition, price controls and price reductions, the risk of loss or expiration of patents or trade marks, difficulties of obtaining and maintaining governmental approvals for products, the risk of substantial product liability claims, exposure to environmental liability.