Mylan Offers $29 Billion for Perrigo

Mylan announced on April 8, 2015 that it has made a proposal to Perrigo to acquire the company for a total of $29 billion. Perrigo, an Irish company that develops and manufactures over-the-counter, prescription pharmaceuticals, nutritional products, and active pharmaceutical ingredients, released a press release on its website stating that an “unsolicited, indicative proposal from Mylan” had been submitted, but that “there can be no certainty that any offer will be made.”

In an official letter from Robert J. Coury, executive chairman at Mylan, to Joseph C. Papa, president and CEO of Perrigo, Coury states, “[b]ased on our many conversations over the years and my knowledge of Perrigo, I have often noted the similarity in the culture and core values of our two companies. We both place paramount emphasis on integrity, respect and responsibility in our commitment to provide the world's seven billion people access to the broadest range of affordable, high quality medicine. We also have a common focus on innovation, reliability and excellent customer service. Most importantly, all of our people are dedicated to creating better health for a better world, one person at a time.  This shared culture and these common values will be key contributors to a successful integration.”

In July 2014, Mylan acquired Abbott’s non-US businesses for $5.3 billion in an all-stock transition. The move to acquire this portion of Abbott was meant to strengthen Mylan’s reach outside of the US and diversify its business. The acquisition of Perrigo would further diversify Mylan’s international ties in the pharmaceutical industry. 

The proposal is subject to board decisions, as well as pre-condition of confirmatory due diligence. This is not an announcement of firm intention. According to Reuters, Morningstar analyst Michael Waterhouse lists Teva and Valeant as potential bidders for Perrigo. “What will be interesting to see is if we end up in a bidding war,” said Waterhouse.

Source: Mylan