Neopharmed Gentili, a pharmaceutical company specializing in the marketing of high therapeutic value solutions controlled by Ardian, is said to be on the market. Il Sole 24 Ore writes, specifying that the process is still at the beginning and that the financial advisor who will handle the auction has not yet been chosen. According to BeBeez, based on market multiples of 15-20x the 2021 ebitda for the sector, the valuation of the company will be at least one billion euros.
Neopharmed Gentili, based in Milan, was born in 2011 following the merger between Gentili srl, purchased by Mediolanum Farmaceutici in 2009, and Neopharmed srl, acquired in 2010. Mediolanum Farmaceutici, founded in 1972 and controlled by the Del Bono family, then sold Neopharmed Gentili to Ardian in November 2018 (see here a previous article by BeBeez).
Over the years, Neopharmed Gentili has supported its development also through external growth, thanks to subsequent partnerships and acquisitions. In particular, at the end of October 2019 the company bought 100% of MDM, a pharmaceutical company based in Monza active in the distribution of drugs, nutraceuticals and medical devices for neurology and orthopedics. The Trognoni and Monico families sold it (see here a previous article by BeBeez).
Led by Alessandro Del Bono, the company is one of the first operators in the Italian market in particular in the cardiovascular area and closed FY 2020 with a value of production of approximately 188 million euros, net revenues of 174.3 millions, an ebitda of 67.1 millions and a net financial debt of 186.5 millions (see the Leanus report here, after registering for free). FY 2021 closed with a production value exceeding 200 million euros.
We recall that Ardian, again in the pharmaceutical and nutraceutical sector, last January conquered 70% of Italy’s Biofarma Group, a specialist in the market of food supplements, medical devices and cosmetics (see here a previous article by BeBeez), born in February 2020 from the merger between Nutrilinea and Biofarma, both controlled by White Bridge investments (see here a previous article by BeBeez). Just a few weeks before the acquisition by Ardian, last December Biofarma Group bought the finished products division of Giellepi spa, through a sale of a business unit (see here a previous article by BeBeez). Biofarma Group has been valued at 1.1 billion euros, with multiples exceeding 20x the 2021 ebitda: multiples that will therefore be taken as a reference term for the next sale of the pharmaceutical Neopharmed Gentili, which in turn can therefore exceed the valuation of one billion euros.
On an international level, Ardian had already invested in the sector only a few months earlier: in June 2021, in fact, it had invested in the Swedish company Recipharm, joining the EQT fund in the capital. EQT had delisted Recipharm from the Stockholm stock exchange about a year ago following a takeover bid. In that case, the company was valued at 16.4x the 2020 ebitda (see the press release of the time here).