GlaxoSmithKline Plc. has agreed to sell 17 over-the-counter medicine brands to Prestige Brands Holdings Inc., best-known for the cleaning agent Comet. The sale, which commands a price of $660 million, yielded a huge jump in Prestige's stocks -- the largest in nearly three years.

San Diego mergers and acquisitions lawyers noted that through the deal, Prestige will increase its annual revenue by about $500 million, more than doubling the company's annual revenue. Some of the brand names being sold in the deal include the digestive supplement Beano, the sleep pill Sominex and the painkiller Ecotrin.

Glaxo said their goal with the deal was to sell off secondary brands in order to focus their resources on their top-priority products. Glaxo is one of the largest drugmakers worldwide and the biggest such company based in the United Kingdom.

Prestige's share values jumped more than 20 percent following news of the sale, which is expected to be completed by the end of the second quarter in 2012, when Glaxo shareholders will receive their payouts for the sale.

The move is beneficial for both companies, given their stated goals. The acquisition is the seventh made by Prestige since 2004. The company appears committed to expanding its brands and products, diversifying sales and increasing revenue streams.

Glaxo, meanwhile, is looking to cut down overhead and the products it oversees in order to improve the company's efficiency and profit margins.

Source: Bloomberg Businessweek "Prestige Agrees to Acquire 17 Glaxo Brands for $660 Million" Dec. 20, 2011