(Reuters) - Botox-maker Allergan Plc (N:AGN) on Wednesday said it will begin to sell off its nearly 10 percent stake in Teva Pharmaceutical (NYSE:TEVA) Industries (TA:TEVA), which has lost 60 percent of its value so far this year.
Allergan sold its generics business to Teva in August 2016 for $33 billion in cash and 100 million shares of the Israeli generic drugmaker, worth around $5.3 billion (4.00 billion pounds) at the time. Under the terms of the deal, Allergan agreed to hold the shares for at least one year. It has previously written down the value.
Teva has struggled and the company's chief executive stepped down in February after sharp criticism for a string of costly acquisitions and delayed drug launches.
Allergan said it plans to sell the shares "in a prudent and orderly manner," with details disclosed in future regulatory filings.
Shares of Teva, which closed up 1.6 percent at $14.02 in regular trading, fell to $13.96 after hours.