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Basel, Switzerland, June 2, 2009 - Novartis has successfully launched
a notes issue of EUR 1.5 billion with a coupon of 4.25% under its EUR
15 billion Euro Medium Term Note Programme. Proceeds will be used for
general corporate purposes.
The seven-year note was priced at 99.757% and has a maturity date of
June 15, 2016. It is guaranteed by Novartis AG, which is incorporated
in Switzerland and is the ultimate parent company of Novartis Finance
S.A., Luxembourg, the issuing entity.
This offering was met with considerable interest, reflected by the
fact it was oversubscribed more than four times and was placed to a
diversified and international investor base.
Novartis AG is rated Aa2 (stable outlook) by Moody's, AA- (stable
outlook) by Standard & Poor's and AA (stable outlook) by Fitch.
Barclays, BNP Paribas and Deutsche Bank were joint book-runners.
Disclaimer
This release contains certain forward-looking statements relating to
the Group's business, which can generally be identified by the
terminology such as "will," or similar expressions, or by express or
implied discussions regarding the potential value of the notes
described in this release, the Group's ability to repay all or any
part of the notes, or potential future sales or earnings of the
Group; or by discussions of strategy, plans, expectations or
intentions. You should not place undue reliance on these statements.
Such forward-looking statements reflect the current views of the
Group regarding future events, and involve known and unknown risks,
uncertainties and other factors that may cause actual results to be
materially different from any future results, performance or
achievements expressed or implied by such statements. There can be no
guarantee that the notes will have any particular value or can be
sold or re-sold for any particular value. Nor can there be any
guarantee that the Group will be able to repay all or any part of the
notes. Neither can there be any guarantee that the Group, or any of
its divisions or business units, will achieve any particular
financial results. In particular, management's expectations could be
affected by, among other things, whether or not a market develops for
the notes; whether or not we issue additional secured or unsecured
debt in the future; whether we decide to redeem the notes;
uncertainties involved in the development of new pharmaceutical
products; unexpected clinical trial results, including additional
analysis of existing clinical data or unexpected new clinical data;
unexpected regulatory actions or delays with respect to our regulated
products, or government regulation generally; the Group's ability to
obtain or maintain patent or other proprietary intellectual property
protection, including the uncertainties involved in the US litigation
process; competition in general; government, industry and general
public pricing and other political pressures; the impact that the
foregoing factors could have on the values attributed to the Group's
assets and liabilities as recorded in the Prospectus and Prospectus
Supplement relating to the Programme and any notes thereunder, and in
Novartis AG's current Form 20-F filed with the US Securities and
Exchange Commission. Should one or more of these risks or
uncertainties materialize, or should underlying assumptions prove
incorrect, actual results may vary materially from those described
herein as anticipated, believed, estimated or expected. Novartis is
providing the information in this release as of this date and does
not undertake any obligation to update any forward-looking statements
as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.
About Novartis
Novartis AG provides healthcare solutions that address the evolving
needs of patients and societies. Focused solely on healthcare,
Novartis offers a diversified portfolio to best meet these needs:
innovative medicines, cost-saving generic pharmaceuticals, preventive
vaccines, diagnostic tools and consumer health products. Novartis is
the only company with leading positions in these areas. In 2008, the
Group's continuing operations achieved net sales of USD 41.5 billion
and net income of USD 8.2 billion. Approximately USD 7.2 billion was
invested in R&D activities throughout the Group. Headquartered in
Basel, Switzerland, Novartis Group companies employ approximately
98,000 full-time-equivalent associates and operate in more than 140
countries around the world. For more information, please visit
http://www.novartis.com.
# # #
Novartis Media Relations
Central media line: +41 61 324 2200
Eric Althoff
Novartis Global Media Relations
+41 61 324 7999 (direct)
+41 79 593 4202 (mobile)
eric.althoff@novartis.com
e-mail: media.relations@novartis.com
Novartis Investor Relations
Central phone: +41 61 324
7944
Ruth Metzler-Arnold +41 61 324 North America:
9980
Pierre-Michel +41 61 324 Richard Jarvis +1 212 830
Bringer 1065 2433
John Gilardi +41 61 324 Jill Pozarek +1 212 830
3018 2445
Thomas Hungerbuehler +41 61 324 Edwin Valeriano +1 212 830
8425 2456
Isabella Zinck +41 61 324
7188
e-mail: e-mail:
investor.relations@novartis.com investor.relations@novartis.com
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Novartis International AG
Posfach Basel
WKN: 904278; ISIN:
CH0012005267; Index: SLCI, SMI, SPI, SLIFE;
Listed: Main Market in SIX Swiss Exchange, ZLS in BX Berne eXchange;
