ALK divests its European veterinary business

COPENHAGEN, Denmark, Dec. 21, 2015 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- ALK (ALKB:DC / OMX: ALK B / AKABY / AKBLF) today announced that it has entered into an agreement to divest its European veterinary business, including related production facilities in the Netherlands. ALK's veterinary business specialises in the development, manufacturing and marketing of immunotherapy products for veterinary use.  

The divestment is in line with ALK's ongoing efforts to simplify its business structure and accelerate the rationalisation of its product portfolio. ALK's business strategy, as outlined in the recent Q3 interim report, is to focus sales efforts on standardised and evidence-based products for human use, such as the SLIT-tablet portfolio. 

The agreement with the buyer - the Swedish investment company Fidelio Capital - is final and the transaction will be effective as of 30 December 2015. 

The value of the transaction is undisclosed, however, the divestment is expected to impact ALK's full-year guidance on free cash flow positively by DKK 40-50 million. The divestment does not materially impact ALK's full-year guidance for revenue and EBITDA before special items. The net gain on the sale will be recognised as special items in the profit and loss statement.  

Kempen & Co acted as exclusive M&A advisor to ALK. 

ALK's European veterinary business was expected to have revenue of approximately DKK 30 million for 2015. The business employs 25 people.

ALK-Abello A/S

For further information please contact:
Jens Bager, President and CEO, tel. +45 4574 7576
Investor Relations: Per Plotnikof, tel. +45 4574 7527, mobile +45 2261 2525
Media: Jeppe Ilkjaer, tel. +45 7877 4532, mobile +45 3050 2014 

About ALK
ALK is a research-driven global pharmaceutical company focusing on allergy prevention, diagnosis and treatment. ALK is a world leader in allergy immunotherapy - a treatment of the underlying cause of allergy. The company has approximately 1,900 employees with subsidiaries, production facilities and distributors worldwide. ALK has entered into partnership agreements with MSD (known as Merck (NYSE: MRK) in the USA and Canada), Torii, Abbott and Seqirus (previously bioCSL) to commercialise sublingual allergy immunotherapy tablets in North America, Japan, Russia, and Australia and New Zealand, respectively. The company is headquartered in Hoersholm, Denmark, and listed on NASDAQ Copenhagen. Find more information at www.alk.net.