GSK raises £1.25bn as it offloads final stake in Haleon

May 17, 2024 - 07:09

In its first quarter, British company GSK said sales rose 10 per cent to £7.4bn but total operating profit fell 18 per cent to £1.49bn.

GSK has offloaded the remainder of its stake in its former consumer goods division Haleon for £1.25bn today, severing the final ties between the two firms following a blockbuster de-merger two years ago.

In an announcement this morning, the FTSE 100 pharma firm said it had raised £1.25bn selling its final 385,320,100 shares in the firm at a price of 324p per share, a discount on Haleon’s current share price.

The move separates the companies after a carve-up two years ago that saw GSK spin off and float its consumer arm as Haleon, amid fears the division was weighing on the growth of its dedicated healthcare business.

GSK initially retained a 13 per cent stake in the business but has been slowly feeding the shares into the market, raising a cumulative total of some £3.9bn through four share sales in 2023 and 2024.

“GSK’s exit of its position in Haleon is consistent with its previous commitments to monetise its holding in a disciplined manner,” GS said today.

After floating in July 2022, Haleon has risen about five per cent to trade at a value of around $30bn.

The company is led by Brian McNamara, previously head of the consumer business at GSK.