BioMarin shares climbed more than 10% Thursday on talk of a potential takeover. And if that scenario sounds familiar, that’s because it is.
This time, the rumored interested buyer is Roche, according to the Betaville blog, whose sources say a deal for between $130 and $150 per share could be in the works. While it’s still unclear whether Roche ($RHHBY) has put forth a formal offer or held talks with BioMarin ($BMRN), one source said those processes may have been placed on hold on account of the Brexit vote and its impact on the markets.
It’s not the first time Betaville writer Ben Harrington has reported BioMarin interest from the Swiss pharma giant. Back in 2013, the blog said the Basel-based drugmaker was eyeing a $13.5 billion transaction for the San Rafael, CA-based company, fueling chatter that Roche CEO Severin Schwan tamped down not long thereafter.
For Roche, a cancer heavyweight, a buyout of BioMarin would beef up its rare-disease offerings, which currently include idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis med Esbriet. More recently, though, the buzzed-about potential buyer has been Sanofi ($SNY), which Betaville said last month could be sizing up BioMarin as a potential backup if its quest to buy Medivation ($MDVN) fails.
Lately, though, Sanofi’s taken a step in the right direction toward snagging its longtime target. Earlier this week, it agreed to drop a hostile pursuit of the California maker of prostate cancer star Xtandi after the company opened up its books.
Of course, it’s still entirely possible that Sanofi will lose out on its prize--especially considering that Medivation inked confidentiality pacts with “a number of parties” interested in a potential tie-up. Pfizer ($PFE), AstraZeneca ($AZN), Amgen ($AMGN), Gilead ($GILD), Celgene ($CELG) and Novartis ($NVS) have all reportedly been taking a look at a deal for the San Francisco outfit.
- see the Betaville post
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