Strides Arcolab to buy some Australia drug assets from Aspen Pharmacare

Drugmaker Strides Arcolab Ltd said on Thursday it has agreed to buy a generic drugs business in Australia from South Africa's Aspen Pharmacare Holdings Ltd for about A$380 million ($299.90 million).

Strides said it will also buy some branded drugs as part of the deal.

The business being acquired brought in sales of about A$120 million in the year ended in June 2014, Strides said in a statement to the BSE. 

Strides plans to finance the deal with internal accruals and debt, and expects it to be immediately accretive to its earnings per share. The company said it expects the deal to close by the end of the second quarter.

The business being acquired under the deal will operate under the Arrrow Pharmaceuticals brand and will sell both prescription and non-prescription products, Strides said.

($1 = 1.2671 Australian dollars)