BofA Sees Galderma's $1.5 Billion ZO Skin Health Acquisition as Accretive to FY28 EPS Growth

06:00 AM EDT, 10/16/2026 (MT Newswires) -- BofA Global Research views Galderma Group's (GALD.SW) $1.5 billion all-cash acquisition of US-based physician-dispensed skincare company ZO Skin Health as a strategic fit projected to become accretive to core EPS starting in full-year 2028. "We see the deal as in line with the group's capital allocation policy (bolt-on, dermatologist facing). ZO generated $330m sales in 12m to June 2026, implying 4.5x EV/Sales valuation, a 10% discount to recent Beauty M&A deals. The deal will increase the scale of Derma Skincare by 20%, or its sales mix by 4ppt. We expect the deal to be neutral on Core EPS in 2027E, and accretive from 2028E onwards," according to a Thursday note. The research firm believes ZO Skin Health will rank as the Swiss-listed dermatology company's second-largest derma skincare brand, adding an estimated 50 basis points to 80 basis points to the unit's growth and 33 basis points to 45 basis points to the wider group growth across 2028 through 2031. "The brand is complementary to the group's current offering (20% cheaper than Alastin, wider SKU count, different ingredients base), and offers access to 16.5k physicians, of which we assume there is some overlap with Galderma's existing client base," the note said. Against this backdrop, BofA reiterated its buy rating and price objective of 200 francs on the stock.