Pfizer Consumer Healthcare attracts bidding interest

Over-the-counter medicines Sudafed and Listerine could soon have a new owner, according to the latest reports.

News emerged over the weekend from the Sunday Times that Reckitt-Benckiser, the company that owns Lemsip, is readying itself to make a ?6 billion move for Pfizer Consumer Healthcare.

Tuesday saw reports that any price for the over-the-counter arm of the pharmaceutical giant would likely cost in the region of $10 billion (?5.7 billion), according to the Times, which cites a spokesman for the company.

The newspaper reports that the company is in talks with a number of parties regarding the potential sale of Pfizer Consumer Healthcare, but said that a final decision on the future of the division was possibly several months away.

Pfizer has recruited investment bank Lazard to auction the consumer healthcare arm of the company after deciding it was not of key strategic importance, the Times said, but a spokesman for Pfizer said it was “too early” to be discussing a definite sale.

This morning, Bayer chief executive Werner Wenning refused to comment over speculation linking it with a bid for the over-the-counter service, saying: “We would never disclose any details about a market transaction,” according to Reuters.

Other pharmaceutical and healthcare giants such as GlaxoSmithKline, Johnson & Johnson and Colgate-Palmolive are rumoured to be interested in Pfizer Consumer Healthcare.

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