Aspen Pharmacare to target Latin America for acquisitions; Full-year results

South African drugmaker Aspen Pharmacare Holdings (APN:SJ) is considering additional acquisitions in Brazil and Latin America at large, reports the journal Invest in Brazil (IiB)). The firm is keen on growing its business not only Latin America, but also in other parts of the world such as Australia, where it is in the process of acquiring the pharmaceutical Division of Sigma Pharmaceuticals in a worth around $800 million (The Pharma Letter August 16), although a shareholders’ decision is still awaited.

Stephen Saad, Aspen chief executive officer of Durban, South Africa said the South American Continent represents the firm’s most promising areas in terms of growth and expansion. That arises from the simple fact that Brazil provides the highest risk, as well as the highest rewards, said Mr Saad. Aspen has operations that span the globe, with supply operations in 100 countries globally. Brazil’s position as one of the fastest growing pharmaceuticals markets certainly offers opportunities for growth, he added.

The Sigma acquisition is expected to bolster Aspen’s three-year expansion strategy that has been behind the drugmaker’s success in establishing a foothold far and wide, such as in Brazil, Mexico, Africa and other Latin America states. Analysts have been upbeat over Aspen’s growth mechanism, a strategy that has left investors awed by the firm’s futuristic strategies for a harmonized expansion into the future, said IiB.