EQT, ADIA to acquire Nestlé Skin Health in CHF 10.2bn deal

Katharine Hidalgo
16 May 2019

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A consortium led by EQT and the Abu Dhabi Investment Authority (ADIA) has entered into exclusive negotiations to acquire skin care company Nestlé Skin Health for an enterprise value of CHF 10.2bn.

The consortium consists of EQT VIII fund, Luxinva (a wholly-owned subsidiary of ADIA), The Public Sector Pension Investment Board (PSP) and other institutional investors.

EQT VIII closed on €10.75bn in February 2018 and was 1% deployed as of September 2018.

Nestlé hired Credit Suisse and Evercore to sell the asset, according to Unquote sister publication Mergermarket. The skin care business was estimating adjusted EBITDA of CHF 550m, according to Mergermarket.

The auction process saw KKR and a consortium led by Advent International and Cinven make offers, as well as Unilever and Colgate-Palmolive, according to reports.

The divestment comes as Nestlé also considered sales of food brands Herta Charcuterie, Le Parfait and Franck Aroma.

If the transaction succeeds, the consortium will continue with the strategy put in place by the management. The consortium plans to invest in the aesthetics unit, and continue investments in R&D and business development in the prescription division. For the consumer health business, the consortium plans to increase its presence in the US, launch new products and focus on international expansion.

During Nestlé's ownership, the business has operated as an independent business unit under the leadership of Stuart Raetzman. The company will keep its headquarters in Switzerland and will be rebranded as Galderma.

Company
Founded in 1981 as Galderma and operating as a wholly owned subsidiary of Nestlé since 2014, Nestlé Skin Health is a skin care company offering a range of medical and consumer skin health products and services through three business units: aesthetics, prescription (both under the Galderma brand), and consumer health. The business has a combined revenue of CHF 2.8bn and employs more than 5,000 people worldwide.

People
EQT Partners – Michael Bauer (global head, healthcare).
ADIA – Hamad Shahwan Al Dhaheri (executive director, private equities department).
PSP Investments – Przemek Obloj (managing director).

Advisers
Equity – Rothschild & Co (corporate finance); PwC (corporate finance); Kirkland & Ellis International (legal).
Vendor – Credit Suisse (corporate finance); Evercore (corporate finance).