Paulson Joins Valeant's Board -- WSJ
June 20 2017 - 3:02AM
Dow Jones News
By Imani Moise
Hedge-fund billionaire John Paulson has joined the board of
Valeant Pharmaceuticals International Inc., a sign that the
investor remains bullish on the drugmaker's prospects despite
accruing steep losses on investments in the firm.
Mr. Paulson has been one of the largest shareholders in the
company for several years, betting early that consolidation in the
pharmaceutical industry would accelerate. But a series of scandals
at Valeant over its accounting practices and drug pricing have
battered the company's stock, causing the value of Mr. Paulson's
stake to plunge 81% to $245 million at the end of last year from
$1.3 billion in 2015.
Mr. Paulson's hedge fund, Paulson & Co., had a 5.6% stake in
Valeant as of Dec. 31. His addition leaves the board with 11
members.
Mr. Paulson has doubled down on his investment even as other
large shareholders have bailed out. William Ackman's Pershing
Square Capital Management LP sold its 8% stake in Valeant at a
roughly $4 billion loss after Mr. Ackman determined the investment
required too many resources for too little return.
Valeant, once a darling of Wall Street trading as high as $262 a
share, is looking to bounce back from its crises. The company has
been shedding assets to shore up its balance sheet and refocus on
its core treatment areas and geographies. The shares rose 81 cents,
or 6.4%, to $13.47 in New York on Monday, leaving it down 7.2% so
far this year.
Filings show Valeant had $28.2 billion in long-term debt as of
Dec. 31.
Mr. Paulson on Monday expressed support for Valeant's current
leadership and turnaround plan.
The billionaire is widely known for his bearish bets against
housing ahead of the financial crisis, but he has struggled in
recent years with client defections and poor performance.
Write to Imani Moise at imani.moise@wsj.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
June 20, 2017 02:47 ET (06:47 GMT)
Copyright (c) 2017 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.
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