• Financial Times, Thursday, February 5, 2009 11 AM

Procter & Gamble has asked Goldman Sachs to identify potential buyers for its pharmaceuticals business, which primarily sells prescription drugs that focus on women's health and gastrointestinal and musculoskeletal problems, sources tell Julie MacIntosh and Jonathan Birchall.

The company's $14.6 billion healthcare division, which sells over-the-counter products such as heartburn treatment Prilosec and Pepto-Bismol, reported $2.5 billion in net earnings for its pharmaceuticals business in 2008.

CEO AG Lafley told analysts in December that the company had stopped investing in new drug development and would consider divesting some of its key pharmaceuticals brands. He said that when P&G had been investing heavily in pharmaceuticals in the 1990s, the returns had been well above those from consumer products. "Today, pharma companies trade at multiples at or below consumer products," he said.

Read the whole story at Financial Times »