Johnson Matthey to sell health division for £325m
Chemical giant Johnson Matthey (JM) announced this morning the sale of its health division for £325m to investment firm Altaris Capital.
The transaction, expected to close in mid-2022, has pushed shares up 0.25 per cent to 1,997p.
Upon completion of the deal, JM will receive £150m cash, retaining a 30 per cent stake in the business. Altaris Capital will also pay the group a further £50m upon achievement of performance targets in FY2023 and FY2024, while an additional £50m will be structured as a vendor loan note.
“The sale of Health is a further step towards simplifying our portfolio,” said JM’s chief executive Robert MacLeod. “While Health has good long-term prospects, near term trading has been challenging, and the business requires significant capital investment.
“Health operates in different markets from the rest of JM, and we believe Altaris is the best partner to drive its future value.”
For the year ended 30 September, Health’s EBITDA amounted to £33m.
Selling Health was part of the group’s strategy to focus on greener – and more lucrative – areas of business, including circularity solutions, hydrogen technologies and the decarbonisation of chemicals and fuels.
The company had in fact sold its battery materials division in early November, stating that returns would not be enough to justify investment, city A.M. reported.