Amylin Pharmaceuticals has hired Credit Suisse and Goldman Sachs in an attempt to find a potential buyer, according to Reuters.
The company was recently rumoured to be the subject of a hostile takeover bid by Bristol-Myers Squibb, thought to be around $22 per share, which valued the company at approximately $3.5bn.
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The approach comes in a dramatic month for the company, which has seen investor Carl Icahn, the holder of an 8.9% stake, launch a lawsuit against the Amylin board over the possibility of nominating new directors.
Carl Icahn is the company’s third largest shareholder, but his claims were dismissed and Amylin has retained its stance that his lawsuit is without merit.
Interest in the company is thought to be strong, with analysts suggesting that AstraZeneca, Merck and Takeda could all look into the possibility of acquiring the firm. AstraZeneca is currently on the acquisition trail, having reached a deal to acquire Ardea Biosciences.
Amylin’s assets include the diabetes medications Byetta, co-developed with Eli Lilly, and Bydureon, a longer-acting version of Byetta, which has recently received approval.
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By GlobalDataAmylin could be looking to ride on the crest of a wave of investment from large pharmaceutical firms who are looking to add new drugs to pipelines and portfolios that are suffering from widespread generic competition. Both Roche and GlaxoSmithKline have had multi-billion dollar bids for companies rejected in the past week.
