EYECARE NEWS: BAUSCH + LOMB SPIN OFF

Bausch Health Companies Inc. have announced their intention to separate their eye health business. Bausch + Lomb and have filed a registration statement with the SEC with a proposed initial offering. All the shares that will be offered will be owned by Bausch Health, although the price range for the IPO are yet to be revealed. Bausch Health will retain the majority ownership and the shares will be found on the New York and Toronto stock exchange's as "BLCO".

In a similar move, Alcon's spin off from Novartis in 2019 saw the two companies separate. The spin off allowed Novartis to focus its energy on pharmaceuticals and Alcon on medical devices. Initially the spin off saw revenues drop for Alcon however this was likely mainly due to the pandemic, as they went on to report $2.1 billion in worldwide sales in the second quarter of 2021, an increase of 75% on a reported basis compared with the same period of 2020. As such, it is very difficult to say whether the spin off was a success.

Considering what we know about Alcon’s spin off from Novartis, do you think this is a positive move for Bausch + Lomb?

My opinion is in the short term there will probably be a significant amount of change which will harm results but, long term it should allow for a more dedicated company with 100% focus on eyecare presuming the transition is handled efficiently.

REFS - https://eyewire.news/news/bausch-lomb-corporation-files-registration-statement-and-preliminary-prospectus-for-proposed-initial-public-offering https://www.novartis.com/news/media-releases/novartis-delivers-solid-q3-results-strong-growth-innovative-medicines-announces-strategic-review-sandoz https://www.novartis.com/news/media-releases/novartis-continues-transformation-leading-medicines-company-completion-alcon-spin