By Adria Calatayud

Generic-drug maker Sandoz Group was valued at around 10.3 billion Swiss francs ($11.18 billion) in its trading debut on the SIX Swiss Exchange after it was spun off from Novartis.

At 0830 GMT, Sandoz's shares traded at CHF23.10, below the CHF24.00 they hit at the opening bell. Novartis's shares slipped 3.85% to CHF88.40.

The market capitalization Sandoz achieved at the start of trading was below the valuations estimated by some analysts. Jefferies analysts said in a research note Tuesday that Sandoz could be valued at between $12.3 billion and $16.2 billion, while Deutsche Bank Research analysts said last month that its market cap could range from $11 billion to $13 billion.

Sandoz's listing marks the end of an era for Novartis and is the latest example of a pharmaceutical company offloading assets to focus on innovative prescription medicines, following similar moves from peers in recent years.

Novartis said its 2023 guidance remains unchanged after the spinoff. It also intends to maintain a consistent approach to capital-allocation priorities, including share buybacks and dividend policy.

Sandoz generated $9.07 billion in net sales last year--most of it from its generics business--and made a net profit of $848 million.

Write to Adria Calatayud at adria.calatayud@dowjones.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

October 04, 2023 05:02 ET (09:02 GMT)

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