Thornton & Ross bought by German giant for £221m
YORKSHIRE-BASED family owned pharmaceutical business Thornton & Ross has been bought by a German group for £221m.
The deal, sees Huddersfield-based Thornton & Ross – which produces Covonia cough medicine and Setlers digestive tablets – acquired by German drug maker STADA Arzneimittel.
Thornton & Ross shareholders were advised by the Deloitte Corporate Finance Team in Leeds and legal advice was provided by Eversheds.
The company, which was founded in 1922, was the largest independent pharmaceutical group in the UK with brands including Zoflora disinfectant, Mycota athlete’s foot treatments and Radian B muscle pain cream.
STADA had earnings of £276m on sales of £1.57bn last year and is based in the spa town of Bad Vilbel, just a few miles north of Frankfurt.
Listed on the Frankfurt stock market, it produces branded products including the cold medicine Grippostad, the Parkinson’s disease medication ApoGo and the suncream Ladival.
It also produces stomach medicines, antihypertensive agents and anti-
inflammatory agents.
Thornton & Ross was founded in 1922 by Nathan Thornton and Phillip Ross and produces a range of medicinal and household products, including head lice treatment Hedrin, Fenox nasal spray and Transvasion for muscular aches and pains.
