Capsugel Separating From Pfizer

Pfizer announced it was considering divesting from Capsugel, one of its divisions that has staff at the Pearl River Campus, last October.

They announced the pending sale of Capsugel to Kohlberg Kravis Roberts & Co. L.P. (KKR) April 4 of this year for $2.375 billion in cash. Capsugel, which manufactures hard capsules, over 180 billion of them in 2010, and generated $750 million in revenue last year.

"Capsugel has an excellent portfolio and an outstanding reputation for providing high-quality, innovative drug-delivery solutions," said KKR Founders and Co-CEO's Henry R. Kravis and George R. Roberts in a press release. "We look forward to working with Capsugel's talented employees and investing in this business."

Four of those employees will still be working at the Pearl River location once the transition is complete, most likely this month.

"They will be able to access and urse the services and amenities currently available at the Pearl River facility," said Pfizer spokeswoman Joan Campion. "They will be Capsugel colleagues, but they will co-locate at the Pfizer facility. The completion of the transaction is in the very near future."

This could be the first of a number of divestments by Pfizer for divisions at the Pearl River location. The company announced last month that it is looking into alternatives regarding its Animal Health and Nutrition Businesses. The release mentioned selling those division as one option.

"Both Animal Health and Nutrition are strong businesses with attractive customer bases and solid fundamentals, but distinct enough from our core businesses that their value may be best maximized outside the company," said Ian Read, president and ceo of Pfizer. "In exploring these alternatives, we can determine what options will best drive their future growth opportunities and expansion and enable shareholders to potentialy realize higher value for these businesses."