That includes Pfizer’s $US17 billion deal for injectable drug maker Hospira.
Advertisement
Pfizer Inc and Allergan Plc are considering combining, the Wall Street Journal said on Wednesday.
Pfizer has a market capitalization of $218.6 billion while Allergan is at $113 billion. A takeover of Dublin-based Allergan could have similar advantages for Pfizer, the Wall Street Journal reported.
The process is at an early stage and may not lead to an agreement, the Journal said.
The US-based company was not immediately available for comment. Allergan is the third-largest generic drugmaker in the US following its merger in March with Actavis, for which Pfizer had made an unsuccessful takeover bid previous year. The Botox-maker’s revenue is seen increasing 39% this year, according to Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S estimates, although much of that growth is thanks to the Actavis deal. The first half of 2015 has witnessed over $200 billion surge in pharmaceutical deals. And Saunders said after that he hoped to use those proceeds to do another large, “transformational” merger.
Both Pfizer and Allergan’s shares were little changed after the bell on Wednesday.
Pfizer employs about 4,000 people in eight plants across Ireland manufacturing a range of cardiovascular drugs, vaccines, animal health products and Viagra, while Allergan employs close to 1,000 people in Westport principally in R&D and production of Botox.
Pfizer reported third-quarter earnings Tuesday that handily beat analysts’ expectations and caused the stock to rise by 2.8% a share for the day.
Advertisement
While Pfizer wanted to buy AstraZeneca in part to boost Pfizer’s pipeline of cancer drugs, a deal with Allergan would involve dermatology drugs and generics.
