Two major owners of INC Research ($INCR) have announced that they are to sell off 4.5 million shares as they look to lower their financial interest in the CRO.
Avista Capital Partners and affiliates of Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan (OTPP) are the two companies in question, with INC saying in a statement that it intends to buy around 1.5 million of these shares back in a stock repurchase program.
The sell-off will see Avista own just under 4% of the CRO, while OTPP will own exactly zero. The two just a year ago owned collectively around two-thirds of the company.
This comes as rumors persist that the highly acquisitive LabCorp ($LH) is seeking to buy INC, although no move has yet been made public.
INC saw its net service revenue for Q1 jump 17.7% to $249 million, when compared to last year, with this growth primarily driven by a particularly strong showing in the central nervous system, oncology and other complex therapeutic areas.
But alongside these figures the CRO also announced that it was to cull around 175 staffers, including 30 from its Raleigh HQ. In the second quarter, INC recorded $259 million of net service revenue, a 14 % rise.
The company saw its shares fall by 3% at the end of play yesterday on the news.
- check out the release
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