Pfizer in $100bn ‘bid’ for UK rival

US pharmaceutical giant Pfizer has reportedly approached British rival AstraZeneca to propose a $100bn (€73bn) takeover.

A report said that informal conversations about a deal had taken place between the two, but that no talks were currently under way after AstraZeneca resisted the approach. Both companies have declined to comment on the report, carried in the British edition of the Sunday Times.

AstraZeneca, Britain’s second-biggest pharmaceuticals group, has been frequently touted as a potential takeover target as it wrestles with patents expiring on a number of bestselling drugs, leaving future growth uncertain.

Despite these problems, the company has attracted attention for experimental cancer drugs it is developing, that could be interesting for Pfizer which has faced patent losses of its own, notably regarding its anti-cholesterol treatment Lipitor.

The two firms are familiar with each other’s products, through working together on projects such as the pioneering of a new kind of clinical trial for cancer drugs, which was announced last week.

Pfizer could use cash it has accumulated through overseas subsidiaries, which if repatriated to the US would be heavily taxed.

In the past, Swiss drug firm Novartis and larger British peer GlaxoSmithKline have been mentioned as potential suitors, although GSK has publicly said it is not interested in making a large acquisition in recent years.

AstraZeneca, which announces first quarter results on Thursday, has a market valuation of around $80bn, compared with Pfizer — which is valued at $193bn.

Earnings at AstraZeneca fell 6% in the fourth quarter of 2013, and it has said it expects them to keep falling in 2014 as generic competition to Nexium, its popular heartburn and ulcer drug, takes a big bite out of US profits from late May.

Pfizer’s last big acquisition was in 2009, when it bought US rival Wyeth.