Canadian generic drug manufacturer

Apotex Inc.

is looking at the first half of the year for an i

nitial public offering

in Toronto that could raise as much as $1 billion, according to people familiar with the matter.

An

IPO

of that size would be Canada’s largest debut since 2021. RBC Capital Markets, Jefferies Financial Group and TD Securities are advising on the transaction, people familiar with the offering have said.

No final decisions have been made on the exact timing or size of the offering, and the plans may still change, the people said, asking not to be identified discussing private information. Spokespeople for Jefferies, RBC and TD declined to comment, while a representative for Apotex didn’t respond to requests for comment.

Apotex was founded in 1974 by Barry Sherman, who built the company into one of the world’s largest manufacturers of generic drugs. Sherman and his wife, Honey Sherman, were found dead in their Toronto home in December 2017 in what police described as a double homicide. The case remains unsolved.

The company was sold in 2023 to New York-based SK Capital Partners, a life-sciences focused investment firm, in a transaction that valued Apotex at between $3 billion and $4 billion, people with knowledge of the deal previously told Bloomberg Businessweek.

The potential offering comes as other Canadian companies test the market. Saskatchewan’s AGT Food and Ingredients Inc. is expected to be among the first sizable listings this year. The agribusiness and some of its shareholders are seeking to raise as much as $460 million in an IPO.

Apotex is considering an offering that would raise $750 million to $1 billion, the people said. At the top of the range, it would be the biggest Canadian new listing since Definity Financial Corp. raised about $1.6 billion in November 2021.

Bloomberg.com