African Pharma Tycoon Saad Falls From Grace as Aspen Plunges

  • South African company’s stock falls most in its history
  • Delayed sale of infant formula unit hurting cash, debt levels
Stephen SaadPhotographer: Waldo Swiegers/Bloomberg
Lock
This article is for subscribers only.

Aspen Pharmacare Holdings Ltd. Chief Executive Officer Stephen Saad had a bad Friday.

Shares in the drugmaker he co-founded more than two decades ago crashed by as much as 50 percent in Johannesburg as investors balked at mounting debt and another delay to a key asset sale. Saad, who owns 12 percent of the company, saw his net worth slashed by as much as 4 billion rand ($276 million).