AstraZeneca rejects new Pfizer bid

AstraZeneca has rejected a final £69bn takeover offer from US drugs giant Pfizer, saying it undervalued the company.

The UK-based pharmaceuticals firm spurned the latest advance from the Viagra maker after it upped the price it was prepared to pay over the weekend.

AstraZeneca said the deal would bring “uncertainty and risk” for its shareholders and “undervalues the company and its attractive prospects”.

Chairman Leif Johansson said: “Pfizer’s approach throughout its pursuit of AstraZeneca appears to have been fundamentally driven by the corporate financial benefits to its shareholders of cost savings and tax minimisation.”

He said that from the time of initial talks in January, the US company had “failed to make a compelling strategic, business or value case”.