Glass maker Schott considers listing medical bottles unit
01/08/2022 09:42
FRANKFURT, Aug 1 (Reuters) - Germany's privately-held
speciality glass maker Schott AG said on Monday it was looking
into a public listing of its pharmaceutical bottles and vials
unit Schott Pharma AG & Co. KGaA to fund its growth.
In a statement, the world's biggest supplier of speciality
glass for medical bottles and syringes said the unit was acting
as an independent business from now on.
"This step also allows us to assess new funding options,
including a possible initial public offering of Schott Pharma,"
Schott AG's finance chief Jens Schulte said.
German newspaper Handelsblatt reported in April the business
could be valued at 3.5 billion to 4 billion euros on the stock
exchange.
Schott AG Chief Executive Frank Heinricht said the
subsidiary would remain an "integral part" of the parent
company, while a listing would open up growth opportunities,
including acquisitions and partnerships.
The pharmaceutical unit saw sales increase by a "double
digit" percentage to 650 million euros ($665 million) in the
2021 fiscal year, 3% of which was COVID-19 related, according to
the statement.
Company founder Otto Schott in the 1890s invented heavy-duty
borosilicate glass, a raw material for medical bottles. Schott's
competitors in that market include Nippon Electric Glass
5214.T , Nipro 8086.T and Corning Inc.
It also makes finished bottles, or vials, with peers in a
more fragmented market including France's SGD Pharma, Germany's
Gerresheimer and Italy's Stevanato Group.
($1 = 0.9771 euros)
(Reporting by Ludwig Burger; Editing by Emelia
Sithole-Matarise)
((ludwig.burger@thomsonreuters.com; +49 30 220133634;))