SeQuent Scientific Ltd said on Tuesday it has agreed to sell its stake in Strides Pharma Science Ltd to the family office of Arun Kumar, one of its existing promoters, for Rs 157.3 crore ($21 million).
The animal healthcare company will sell its 3.31 million shares in Strides Pharma, or a 3.7% stake, at Rs 475 apiece, it said in a stock-exchange filing.
Shares of Stride Pharma ended at Rs 579 apiece on the BSE on Tuesday, down 4.4% from Monday’s close.
SeQuent said it will use the money received from this sale to consolidate the minority interest in Turkey and to pare debt.
The transaction is subject to receiving the approval of the company’s shareholders.
The move comes three months after private equity firm Carlyle decided to acquire a majority stake in SeQuent for as much as Rs 1,580 crore. The transaction is subject to regulatory approvals and is likely to be completed by October.
SeQuent functions in the animal health segment through subsidiary Alivira Animal Health. It also provides analytical services.
The company, which has a presence in more than 100 countries, owns eight manufacturing facilities in India, Spain, Germany, Brazil and Turkey. Europe contributed 51% of the firm’s 2018-19 formulation business revenue while emerging markets accounted for 22% and Latin America 13%.
Earlier, SeQuent had sold its speciality chemicals unit in 2014 and spun off its human bulk-drugs business into Solara in early 2018.
