Japanese drugmaker Santen Pharmaceutical said on Wednesday it has agreed to buy 50.55 percent of French eye care company Novagali from its main shareholders, followed by a tender offer for the rest of the company. Santen, which expects to pay about 100 million euros($136 million)for the entire company, says on its website that it is the leader in Japan for prescription ophthalmics with a market share of nearly 40 percent, but it is also present in anti-rheumatic drugs. Novagali shareholders Edmond de Rothschild Investment Partners, Auriga Partners, IdInvest Partners and CDC Innovation have agreed to sell their shares at 6.15 euros each -- a 71.3 percent premium to Novagali’s closing share price on Sept. 27. Novagali said.
