AstraZeneca share price subdued as pharmco mulls $10bn bid for Medivation

AstraZeneca (LON:AZN) is considering tabling a last-minute bid for $10 billion (£7.7 billion) US oncology specialist Medivation, The Sunday Times has reported. The US group, which sells a blockbuster treatment for prostate cancer, is reportedly courting bidders.

AstraZeneca’s share price has headed south this morning, having lost 1.06 percent to 4,525.50p as of 08:47 BST. The shares are underperforming the broader London market, with the benchmark FTSE 100 index having climbed marginally into positive territory and currently standing 0.20 percent higher at 6,603.53 points. The pharmco’s shares have gained some six percent over the past year, but are down by a little over one percent in the year-to-date.

The Sunday Times reported yesterday that AstraZeneca had checked out Medivation earlier this year and was understood to have retained an interest. Sources with knowledge of the process told the newspaper that the US oncology specialist, which opened its books to Pfizer and Sanofi last week, was still courting other potential bidders.
The Sunday Times noted that Medivation had hosted a series of calls with analysts and investors to talk up its pipeline of new treatments, which industry sources have described as an attempt to spark a bidding war. AstraZeneca meanwhile is seen as among the most likely to enter the fray, having completed a number of deals in the past year as it looks to bolster its portfolio to counter a decline in sales of some of its flagship drugs which face competition from cheaper generics.
The Anglo-Swedish drugmaker has also been trimming its noncore assets, having bet on a limited number of areas to spur growth, namely oncology, respiratory, inflammation and autoimmunity, and cardiovascular and metabolic diseases.
AstraZeneca is scheduled to update the market on its half-year performance on July 28.
As of 09:10 BST, Monday, 11 July, AstraZeneca plc share price is 4,534.50p.