Valeant Pharmaceuticals Chief Executive Joe Papa told shareholders that he is near to meet its target of repaying $5 billion in debt between August, 2016 and February, 2018 and the company shares went up in Toronto: “We feel very comfortable that we will achieve that $5 billion debt paydown through a combination of asset sales plus the operational results,” 

Valeant’s debts were up till more than $30 billion under former CEO Mike Pearson, replaced then by Joe Papa. 

It has been also reported that a process for the sale of some non-core assets is underway, but it has not been said if transactions are expected to conclude by 2017, as the CEO said: “We have flexibility on time,” he said. “We don’t need to sell things at prices that are not acceptable to our shareholders.”

According to Papa the company’s core business are gastrointestinal drugs, eye care and dermatology products, however he

has not exclueded the possibility of selling also those assets.

During the meeting with the shareholders Joe Papa has also said that the company is considering a name change in order to overcome the difficulties faced in the last period during which it has lost 96% of its value following concerns about excessively high prices of some drugs under Pearson, investigations of some of its practices and towering debt.

However,it has been taken any final decision but the company is “very serious” in considering the idea, Papa said.

Source: Reuters