Alcon Replaces CEO and Restructures After Poor Earnings Report

Thursday, January 28 2016 | 00 h 00 min | News

Following reports of plummeting sales from Alcon’s eye-care unit and news that Novartis will miss its Q4 earnings estimates, Alcon executive Jeff George will be replaced by Mike Ball beginning February 1st.

In addition, Novartis will restructure in order to address Alcon’s well-documented woes. Alcon’s ophthalmic medicines business will be combined into Novartis’ general pharmaceuticals unit, and some mature pharmaceutical products will be sold under Sandoz’ generics label.

Novartis reviewed whether to sell Alcon, but decided to keep Alcon’s contact lens care unit and invest a further $200 million into Alcon, believing the unit’s growth will revive. Novartis will try to trim $1 billion in annual costs by 2020 through centralizing manufacturing.

Novartis expects sales in 2016 to be largely unchanged from last year and forecasts low single-digit growth for Alcon.

Further information: http://www.star-telegram.com/news/business/article56791253.html