Savient sells Rosemont subsidiary for $176 million

By Elaine Rigoli

Tampa, Fla., Aug. 4 - Savient Pharmaceuticals, Inc. completed the sale of its wholly owned subsidiary, Rosemont Pharmaceuticals, Ltd., to an entity affiliated with Close Brothers Private Equity for $176 million.

The net proceeds from this transaction after taxes and expenses are estimated to be $140 million and will be used for full development and commercialization of drug candidate Puricase (PEG-uricase) for treatment failure gout, Savient said in a news release.

Savient also said it is finalizing a plan to pursue a program to repurchase outstanding shares of Savient's common stock.

"We are pleased to have successfully completed this transaction and achieved another milestone in building shareholder value. The sale follows an extensive examination of the alternatives that were available for the Rosemont business and we believe that this transaction is in the best interests of shareholders. We extend our best wishes to our colleagues at Rosemont as they continue to advance their development of the oral liquid pharmaceutical business," president and chief executive officer Christopher Clement said in a news release.

"In addition, the net proceeds from the transaction provide us the resources to advance our plan to repurchase outstanding shares of our common stock. This stock purchase plan underscores the confidence of management and our board of directors in Savient's long-term growth prospects and the potential of Puricase," he added.

Based in East Brunswick, N.J., Savient is a pharmaceutical company.

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