ABT announced the idea to split the stock on October 18th, 2011. The company plans to be split by 12/31/12. The press release said the, “Two publicly traded companies will offer shareholders distinct opportunities given unique investment identities, business profiles and attributes” and “builds on a decade of strategic and operational advancements.”
One company will be the research-based pharmaceutical firm and will focus on select specialty products with breakthrough innovation that serve patient needs in some of the most critical medical areas, such as immunology, Multiple Sclerosis, chronic kidney disease, Hepatitis C, women’s health and oncology. This company will continue to generate the majority of its revenue from developed markets. The company’s sustainable portfolio and advancing pipeline, including established biologics expertise, have the potential to deliver accelerating revenue growth in the coming years.
Then the other firm, the diversified medical products company, will be one of the largest and fastest growing investment opportunities in medical products with strong sales and ongoing earnings-per-share growth and a large, broad mix of products addressing many essential areas of health care. It will generate nearly 40 percent of its sales in high-growth emerging markets, with further expansion expected in the coming years.
AbbVie will be the drug portfolio and pipeline company, while Abbott, with nutritional products and devices, will be the other firm. More to come with this story.
Data from ABT IR