Shareholders Criticize Sanacorp Bosses

Shareholders in the German drug wholesale group Sanacorp have criticizedmanagement at the company's annual general meeting over business strategy and the failure to reach sales and earnings targets. The company's results for 1996-97 have not been released. One shareholder at the meeting in Frankfurt said that the firm had not yet grasped what it meant to be a listed company. However, chairman Juergen Brink rejected charges that Sanacorp had no strategic answer to intense competition.

There was widespread dissatisfaction among shareholders over Sanacorp's intentions with regards to Anzag, in which it has a near-25% stake valued at 50 million Deutschemarks ($28.1 million) in Sanacorp's books but with a stock exchange value of 196 million marks. Mr Brink rejected calls from the AGM to sell the stake to UniChem, adding there would be no merger of Sanacorp and Anzag.

Mr Brink said that the aim was to bring about a holding company with Anzag to meet the challenge of strong competition. He mentioned OPG of the Netherlands and Herba Chemosan Apotheker of Austria as potential partners.