Healthcare Business roundup: Baxter, Sanofi & Eli Lilly

Baxter International to sell kidney care spin-off Vantive 

Private equity firm Carlyle Group is in talks to acquire Baxter International's kidney care spin-off, Vantive, for an estimated $4 billion.

US multinational medical device maker company Baxter focuses on products to treat kidney disease, as well as other chronic and acute medical conditions.

Baxter said it has been in discussions with “select private equity investors” to explore a potential sale of the kidney care unit, more than a year after it announced plans to separate the unit amid supply-chain challenges and weak demand for dialysis operations.

Baxter says it plans to divest the unit in the second half of 2024.

Carlyle did not respond to a Reuters request for comment.

Sanofi's consumer health unit ‘to be separated’

Bpifrance Executive Director Jose Gonzalo said that the public investment bank is considering a potential investment in French drugmaker Sanofi's consumer health unit, Bloomberg News reports.

Sanofi said in a statement that it does not comment on market rumours, and added that it was “progressing with its preparations for a potential separation of its consumer health business, while keeping all options open”.

Sanofi's consumer health unit’s noted brands include Allegra allergy pills, Gold Bond talcum powder, Icy Hot muscle pain reliever and Selsun Blue shampoo. The unit generated sales of 5.2 billion euros ($5.6 billion) in 2023 – 11% of the company's total revenue.

Eli Lilly to buy Morphic Holding for $3.2bn

US pharma Eli Lilly is to buy Morphic Holding for $3.2 billion in cash, the companies said on Monday, in a move to consolidate its portfolio of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) drugs.

IBD collectively refers to two conditions: Crohn's disease and ulcerative colitis, both of which are autoimmune conditions that are characterised by chronic inflammation of the gastrointestinal tract.

The deal will see Lilly procure an experimental oral IBD treatment that offers patients a more convenient dosing option compared to other injectable therapies.

Abbvie, Pfizer, and Johnson & Johnson are also vying for a share of the bowel disease market.

Lilly counts its IBD drug, Omvoh, among its future growth drivers. Morphic's lead drug, MORF-057, is being tested in studies. It is also developing drugs that are being tested in animals or test tube experiments, for autoimmune diseases, pulmonary hypertensive diseases, fibrotic diseases and cancer.