Basel-based Lonza Group AG announced it has placed five million shares with a combination of private placement investors in Switzerland and institutional and qualified institutional buyers outside Switzerland.
The pharmaceutical and nutritional ingredients player said the proceeds of €810 million (CHF 865 million) increase are intended to be used to partially finance the contemplated acquisition of Capsugel, which was announced in December 2016.
Through the takeover, which is expected to close in the second quarter of 2017, Lonza plans to expand its drug and nutrient delivery business – and is expecting to make savings of CHF100m a year by 2019.
Last year, the firm shelled out €267m for Californian nutrient specialist InterHealth Nutraceuticals.
The new shares are expected to be listed and admitted to trading on the SIX Swiss Exchange on 3. February 2017. Payment and settlement is expected to take place on the same date.