Aliso Viejo drug maker Valeant Pharmaceuticals International said Thursday that it’s undergoing a sweeping restructuring and narrowing of its business.
“In terms of our future strategy, we will no longer try to be a global pharmaceutical company,” said J. Michael Pearson, the company’s chief executive.
Part of that includes shucking off its Poland-based European operations.
Valeant has retained Goldman Sachs & Co. to help in the European divestiture.
Options include a possible initial public offering for those operations.
“A year from now, we would hope not to have operational presence in this part of the world,” Pearson said. “We are not of enough size to compete and manage successfully in all these countries.”
The company’s strategy also includes seeking partners for two of its key drug candidates, taribavirin for hepatitis C and retigabine, an epilepsy treatment.
“We want to make sure these compounds are accessible by all patients around the world,” Pearson said.
The decision to seek partners for taribavirin and retigabine also plays into Valeant’s decision to concentrate on drugs for neurology and dermatology.
Valeant’s makeover will extend to its executive suite.
All members of the senior management team, except Peter Blott, chief financial officer, and Eileen Pruette, general counsel, are going to be leaving the company and will be replaced, Pearson said.
Valeant’s shares were down 4% with a market value of $1.15 billion in early afternoon New York Stock Exchange trading after its announcement.
Pearson took over as Valeant’s chief executive in February when he replaced
Tim Tyson, who came to Valeant in 2002 and became chief executive in 2005.
Valeant, formerly known as ICN Pharmaceuticals, has been in a state of restructuring for the past few years.
