Boston, MA 04/04/2014 (wallstreetpr) – Mylan Inc (NASDAQ:MYL) is said to be considering a bid to acquire Meda, a Swedish competitor, people familiar with the matter said today. The company has reportedly made preliminary discussions about merger, yet details of the talks are yet to be made public. Discussions about merger deal between Mylan and Meda are very much guarded, in that a deal may or may not occur from the talks which have already been initiated.
Even before reports emerged today that the two companies have entered tie-up talks, reports were widespread that Mylan Inc (NASDAQ:MYL) had tapped advisors to help with possible merger. The company, during the conference call after the release of the last financial results, said it was eying key acquisition opportunities to boost operations.
Mylan Inc (NASDAQ:MYL) which is a maker of specialty and generic drugs posted revenue of $6.9 billion in fiscal 2013. On the other hand, Meda realized sales of 13.1 billion kronor in 2013. As per Thursday’s closing, Meda had market cap of 23.8 billion kronor, which translates to about $4.5 billion. The company employs 3,000 people and operates in more than 55 countries around the world. That contrasts with Mylan’s 20,000 workforce and presence in more than 140 countries. Trading in stock of Meda was stopped in Stockholm Friday.
Heavy acquisition
Many pharmaceutical companies like Mylan Inc (NASDAQ:MYL) are putting their money out to acquire rivals in order to put competition in check and to boost product portfolio. The heightened competition in the drug market has impacted prices and reduced revenue, thus necessitating acquisitions. And Mylan has indicated that it favors acquisition to cushion against competition.
Suing for lockout
Mylan Inc (NASDAQ:MYL) is suing Celgene Corporation (NASDAQ:CELG) over what it terms unlawful practice by the latter to keep it out of the generic market of two drugs with big annual sales. The company accuses CELG of keeping Revlimid and Thalomid out of its reach, thus hampering its efforts to bring generic versions of the drugs to the market. Without access to the drugs, Mylan cannot perform “bioequivalence” test which is required by regulators before launch of generic drugs.
The drugs, Revlimid and Thalomind, are intended for treatment of disorders related to poor formation of blood cells and leprosy respectively. The drugs have annual off the market sale of $4.5 billion.
