Fitch affirms Novartis

Fitch Ratings said it affirmed the senior unsecured and short-term ratings of Novartis AG at AAA and F1+, respectively, following announcement of a potential acquisition of the remaining 57.8% of shares in Chiron Corp. that it does not own for $4.5 billion.

The outlook remains stable.

Fitch said Novartis has announced it will pay for the shares in cash.

If the acquisition does go ahead, Fitch said it expects Novartis to reduce its share buyback program accordingly.

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