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SmithKline Beecham has started a wide-scale, cost-saving restructure that includes the sale of two US subsidiaries: SB Clinical Laboratories (SBCL) and Diversified Pharmaceutical Services (DPS), and four plant closures that will cut its staff by about 3,000 over the next four years.
SBCL, which provides laboratory testing services to the US healthcare industry, has been sold to US-based Quest Diagnostics for $1.025 billion in cash. SB also gains a 29.5 per cent stake in Quest worth around $245 million.
SB will still have access to the former subsidiary's clinical laboratory data to help develop its products and services.
SBCL employs 11,400 people and made a profit of #108m on sales of #935m last year. Its net assets are worth #299m.
DPS manages prescription benefits for US healthcare providers and payers, and has been sold to Express Scripts for $700m cash. After the...