AstraZeneca US M&A idea would ail more than cure
AZN•Context news
AstraZeneca’s shares fell on August 3 following reports the previous day that the UK-listed pharma group had held merger talks with U.S. peer Bristol Myers Squibb.
Shares in AstraZeneca were down 6.7% as of 0722 GMT. A person familiar with the matter told Reuters that AstraZeneca and Bristol had held talks, confirming an earlier Financial Times report.
On July 31, the two had a combined market capitalisation of nearly $400 billion, with AstraZeneca valued at $264 billion and Bristol Myers at $133 billion.
AstraZeneca declined to comment when contacted by Breakingviews.
Breakingviews column
The UK-listed pharma’s shares fell 7% on reports of a Bristol Myers Squibb merger. A $380 bln deal would muddy CEO Pascal Soriot’s growth pitch without yielding fat returns. Given US expansion is doable organically, the plan may go the way of Pfizer’s 2014 swoop on Astra itself.
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