MUMBAI, India (AP) — Pfizer Inc. plans to nearly double its stake in a subsidiary in India by buying back shares from the public. Pfizer said late Sunday that it will buy a 33.77 percent stake in its Pfizer Ltd., paying 675 rupees a share. That’s about a 22 percent premium over Pfizer Limited’s average share price the prior 30 days on both exchanges where it trades, the Bombay Stock Exchange and the National Stock Exchange of India. Pfizer Ltd. does manufacturing and handles marketing in India for prescription medicines for people and medicines for pets and the poultry and dairy industries. The subsidiary also conducts clinical tests of experimental drugs and development of new products. The parent company already owns 41.23 percent of Pfizer Ltd., and would own an even 75 percent with this deal. New York-based Pfizer said the tender offer is expected to begin this June and is requires regulatory approval in India before it can start. The offer will be made by another Pfizer subsidiary, Pfizer Investments Netherlands B.V., which invests in companies in South Asia, a Pfizer spokeswoman said Monday.
