Life Healthcare to sell radiopharmaceuticals business LMI, shares rise

Lantheus Holdings

13/01/2025 11:01

JOHANNESBURG, Jan 13 (Reuters) - South African private
hospital operator Life Healthcare  LHCJ.J  on Monday announced
the sale of its radiopharmaceuticals business LMI to U.S.-listed
Lantheus Holdings  LNTH.O , sending its Johannesburg-listed
shares higher.
    Life Healthcare said it had entered into binding agreements
with an entity owned by Lantheus to sell its entire stake in
Life Molecular Imaging (LMI) for an upfront payment of $350
million and potential earnout payments of a further $400 million
linked to future sales of LMI products up to 2034.
    Radiopharmaceuticals are a new class of cancer drugs that
deliver radiation therapy directly and specifically to cancer
cells.
    Life Healthcare shares were up by more than 3% at 1011 GMT.
    The hospital operator has been selling some assets to try to
reduce its operating complexity. It bought LMI in 2018 as part
of its investment in the Alliance Medical Group.
    "Lantheus is uniquely positioned to invest in and grow LMI's
portfolio of imaging assets and ensure that the business meets
its growth potential," it said in a statement on the
Johannesburg Stock Exchange.

    

 (Reporting by Sfundo Parakozov;
Editing by Alexander Winning and Louise Heavens)
 ((Sfundo.Parakozov@thomsonreuters.com))