Bill Ackman, Valeant Pharmaceuticals Make $45.6 Billion Offer For Allergan Pharmaceuticals

Bill Ackman, an activist Investor, has partnered with Canadian drug producer Valeant Pharmaceuticals in order to make a bid for Allergan. Allergan currently has a market value of around $42 billion, and there are reports that the Ackman-Valeant deal for Allergan would have been worth $45.6 billion after the markets closed on Monday.

Valeant recently purchased another pharmaceutical company, Bausch & Lomb, and analysts believe that the company is currently looking to acquire assets. Analysts see good value in a potential deal, which would unite two pharmaceutical companies that are mid-sized and have portfolios containing eye and skin care products. It is also believed that Allergan could benefit from a lower tax rate from Valeant, which is based in Canada.

Allergan has not released a statement on the matter. However, Valeant says, “Valeant and Pershing Square believe that the combination of the two companies is extremely compelling for both Allergan and Valeant shareholders and will create an unrivaled platform for growth and value creation in healthcare,” said the statement.

J. Michael Pearson, Valeant’s CEO, also spoke on the matter: “Together, we can capitalize on the inherent strengths and complementary portfolios of our two companies, while achieving significant synergies by applying Valeant's unique operating model to a combined set of assets,” said Pearson.