L'Oreal to buy three skincare brands from Valeant for $1.3 bln

PARIS, Jan 10 (Reuters) - French cosmetics group L'Oreal said on Tuesday it was buying three skincare brands - CeraVe, AcneFree and Ambi - from Valeant for $1.3 billion, in a cash deal which L'Oreal said would boost its U.S. revenues.

L'Oreal said that the three brands had an annualised, combined revenue of around $168 million.

""These three brands, built on strong relationships with health professionals and widely distributed, will nearly double the revenue of our Active Cosmetics Division in the U.S. and will help us satisfy the growing demand for active skincare at accessible prices," Frederic Roze, president and chief executive of L'Oréal USA, said in a statement.

(Reporting by Sudip Kar-Gupta; Editing by Andrew Callus)