EQT-Led Group Exits Galderma With Over Four Times Return

(Bloomberg) — A trio of shareholders in Galderma Group AG have reaped a more than four times return from their investments in the Swiss skincare company, according to people familiar with the matter.

Buyout firm EQT AB, Abu Dhabi Investment Authority and Auba Investment Pte — a vehicle of Singaporean sovereign wealth fund GIC Pte — this week exited their remaining stake in Galderma in a 4.89 billion Swiss francs ($6.3 billion) share sale. The transaction, the finale of an exit plan under the codename “Project Indigo,” was increased twice on the back of strong investor demand, the people said.

The three shareholders have been divesting their stakes through Galderma’s initial public offering as well as a series of follow-on placements and bilateral stake sales. The latest deal took the total proceeds to more than 20 billion francs for the three shareholders, said the people, who asked not to be identified as the information is private.

Representatives for EQT, ADIA and GIC declined to comment.

A consortium comprising EQT, ADIA and other institutional investors acquired Galderma in 2019 from Nestle SA for 10.2 billion francs, including debt. After planning an IPO for some time, Galderma raised $1 billion in new equity in 2023 to help bring down debt. It finally went public in Switzerland in March 2024 following a 2.3 billion francs IPO.

Galderma’s shares have rallied more than 180% since the IPO, as the company, whose products include Cetaphil creams and injectable dermatitis drug Nemluvio, delivered strong earnings. The shareholders have periodically tapped investors offloading billions of dollars at time through overnight placings. They sold a 20% stake to L’Oreal SA, which is now the company’s largest shareholder.

–With assistance from Swetha Gopinath and Alex Dooler.

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