Aspen Pharmacare Holdings, the South African pharmaceutical group led by billionaire Stephen Saad, has repurchased R2.43 billion ($148 million) in ordinary shares following the completion of its R197 million ($221 million) sale of the European commercialisation rights and related intellectual property for Ovestin, its women’s health product, to Ennogen Healthcare International.

The company disclosed the two developments in separate announcements on November 5, confirming that it received the full €197 million ($221 million) consideration on November 3 after Ennogen’s funding arrangements became unconditional. The share repurchases, meanwhile, were conducted between November 2 and November 3, as Aspen continued implementing its capital allocation strategy.

The latest buyback brings the total number of shares repurchased under its existing shareholder mandate to 28.32 million, representing approximately 6.3% of the company’s issued share capital as at December 4, 2025, when shareholders granted the general authority.

Aspen completes $221 million Ovestin sale

The completed transaction involves the transfer of Ovestin’s European commercialisation rights, intellectual property, goodwill, product registrations and marketing authorisations from Aspen Global Incorporated, Aspen’s wholly owned subsidiary, to Ennogen.

The assets cover 38 European markets, including the United Kingdom, Germany, France, Italy and Spain. The related inventory, estimated at approximately €4 million when the deal was announced, is payable separately upon delivery.

Ovestin contributed approximately R756 million in revenue, R521 million in gross profit and R238 million in profit after tax to Aspen in the 2026 financial year. Its net asset value stood at approximately R1.6 billion as of June 30, 2026, with the disposal expected to generate a profit of approximately R2 billion.

Aspen retains manufacturing and supply role

Although Ennogen has acquired the European commercial rights, Aspen will maintain a long-term manufacturing relationship with the buyer. Under a manufacturing and supply agreement, Aspen will continue supplying the active pharmaceutical ingredient and cream formulation of Ovestin for an initial ten-year period, which can be extended by mutual agreement.

Aspen Global will also provide strategic facilitation services for five years at €1 million per month to support Ennogen’s integration of the acquired business. A transitional distribution agreement, lasting up to three years, will attract fees equivalent to 4% of net product sales.

Aspen said the disposal supports its strategy of unlocking value from assets outside its emerging-markets focus while creating additional flexibility for capital allocation.

Aspen repurchases 14.99 million shares

In a separate announcement, Aspen confirmed that it had repurchased 14.99 million ordinary shares at an average price of R162.01 apiece, spending R2.43 billion. The lowest price paid was R161.33, while the highest reached R164.89.

The latest purchases represent an additional 3.3% of the company’s issued share capital, taking cumulative repurchases to 28.32 million shares, or approximately 6.3%.

Following the transaction, Aspen has 60.93 million shares remaining under its general repurchase authority, representing approximately 13.7% of its issued shares as at December 4, 2025. The company plans to apply for the delisting and cancellation of the repurchased shares before the end of November 2026.

Share buybacks remain preferred capital return

The pharma company said the latest repurchases were funded from available cash resources and reflected its disciplined approach to capital allocation and confidence in its long-term prospects.

The board also confirmed that the group expects to remain able to meet its obligations, maintain adequate working capital and satisfy the solvency and liquidity requirements over the 12 months following the announcement.

The repurchases and related costs are expected to reduce cash balances by the amount spent, but the company said they would have no material impact on its financial information. Share buybacks remain its preferred means of returning capital to shareholders.