Swiss drugs giant Novartis AG has completed the spin-off of its generics business Sandoz, which made an underpowered stock market debut.
From an IPO price of 24 Swiss Francs, the stock drifted down to 23.82 Swiss Francs.
The move comes as part of Novartis' long-term strategy to focus solely on innovative medicines, according to CEO Narasimhan.
Over the past six years, the group has executed transactions exceeding $100 billion to streamline its business model.
After an initial bright start, Novartis shares drifted down 4% by early afternoon.
For Sandoz, the spin-off will allow it to concentrate on its growth strategy, which includes a pipeline of 25 biologics projects.