Jan 14 (Reuters) - Pfizer ( PFE ) is looking to sell

about 700 million ordinary shares in Haleon ( HLN ), its

bookrunner J.P. Morgan said on Tuesday, lowering its stake in

the British consumer healthcare company to about 7.3% from 15%.

The sale represents nearly 7.7% of issued share capital of

Haleon ( HLN ), which was created by the merger of GSK and

Pfizer's ( PFE ) consumer healthcare businesses in 2019. It was spun off

from the British drugmaker in 2022.

Pfizer ( PFE ), which will remain the largest shareholder in Haleon ( HLN )

after the sale, had in 2023 said it would cut its ownership in a

'slow and methodical' manner within months.

The U.S. drugmaker is under pressure from hedge fund

Starboard Value to hold its management accountable for

underperformance. Last October, it sold a $3.3 billion stake in

the maker of Sensodyne, while GSK sold its entire stake in May.

J.P. Morgan and Morgan Stanley are joint global coordinators

and joint bookrunners for the share sale.

(Reporting by Aatrayee Chatterjee in Bengaluru; Editing by

Shailesh Kuber and Arun Koyyur)