AmerisourceBergen To Acquire World Courier Group, Inc.
AmerisourceBergen Corporation recently announced that it has signed a definitive agreement to purchase World Courier Group, Inc., a privately held leading global specialty transportation and logistics provider for the biopharmaceutical industry, for $520M in cash. The purchase price is subject to a customary working capital adjustment. The acquisition is expected to be neutral to the Company's fiscal year 2012 earnings, and $0.06 to $0.10 accretive in fiscal 2013. The transaction is subject to certain regulatory reviews and other customary closing conditions, and is expected to close in the third quarter of fiscal 2012, which ends June 30, 2012.
World Courier, the premier global specialty provider of transportation, storage and distribution services for multinational biopharmaceutical clinical trials in addition to other end markets, will become a new operating segment within AmerisourceBergen. "The acquisition of World Courier adds a new premium specialty service to our existing portfolio of market leading pharmaceutical manufacturer services," said Steven H. Collis, AmerisourceBergen President and Chief Executive Officer. "The addition of World Courier's unique capabilities and expertise to our existing commercialization services further strengthens our offerings to global pharmaceutical manufacturers, and provides an established platform for the introduction of our specialty services outside North America."
World Courier's President, Wayne B. Heyland, will continue on in this position, reporting directly to Collis. "We are very pleased to bring our global expertise and decades of experience serving international biopharmaceutical manufacturers and contract research organizations (CROs) to AmerisourceBergen," said Heyland. "Our shared values and similar cultures will ensure the smooth integration of our premium services, which will help both of our organizations take advantage of the tremendous growth opportunities that lie ahead, particularly in international markets. We are very excited to become an integral part of the largest specialty distribution and services provider in the world."
World Courier's customized solutions and customer-centric service model complements and meaningfully expands AmerisourceBergen's existing manufacturer services and commercialization support services. World Courier's biopharmaceutical clinical trials logistics, investigational drug storage and distribution, and other specialty logistics businesses utilize a company-owned, fully integrated GxP-compliant global network and dedicated, locally based associates to help drive exceptional reliability and customer service in both well-established and emerging markets. World Courier's annual revenues are expected to be approximately $500 million in calendar year 2012. It has over 137 offices, 13 GMP-compliant storage depots, and 2,500 employees in 52 countries.
About AmerisourceBergen
AmerisourceBergen is one of the world's largest pharmaceutical services companies serving the United States, Canada and selected global markets. Servicing both healthcare providers and pharmaceutical manufacturers in the pharmaceutical supply channel, the Company provides drug distribution and related services designed to reduce costs and improve patient outcomes. AmerisourceBergen's service solutions range from pharmacy automation and pharmaceutical packaging to reimbursement and pharmaceutical consulting services. With more than $80B in annual revenue, AmerisourceBergen is headquartered in Valley Forge, PA, and employs approximately 11,000 people. AmerisourceBergen is ranked #27 on the Fortune 500 list. For more information, visit www.amerisourcebergen.com.
About World Courier
Founded in 1969 by James R. Berger and headquartered in Stamford, Connecticut, World Courier is the largest and most experienced specialty logistics company with a network of 137 wholly-owned ISO 9001-certified offices in 52 countries. It also operates an extensive integrated company-owned network of GMP-compliant investigational drug storage facilities in 13 developing and strategic locations. With a fully GxP-compliant transport and supply chain system in place network-wide, World Courier meets the most demanding industry and regulatory requirements for managing the time- and temperature-sensitive consignments of regulated and other industries. For more information, visit www.worldcourier.com.
SOURCE: AmerisourceBergen Corporation