GSK closes £574m sale of Aspen stock
This article was originally published in Scrip
Executive Summary
GlaxoSmithKline has completed the sale of 28.2 million shares in Aspen Pharmacare, raising £574m and reducing its stake from around 12.4% to 6.2% in the South African firm. It will cease accounting for Aspen as an associate, but has undertaken not to dispose of any shares in Aspen for the next 180 days. The proceeds of the sale, details of which were announced on 12 March, will give GSK greater financial flexibility to invest in core franchises and the assets it has gained with its multi-faceted transaction with Novartis.