Case for Sanofi bid for Actelion could be hard to make, says pharma strategist

With French pharma major Sanofi (Euronext: SAN) now rumored to be sizing-up for Europe’s largest biotech firm Actelion (SIX: ATLN), John Rountree at pharma strategy specialists Novasecta takes an independent look at the implications.

Actelion was founded in 1997 by Jean-Paul Clozel, who is the firm’s chief executive and holds over 5% of the equity in the biotech, and his wife Martine Clozel, along with other investors. The company’s shares were first listed on the SWX New market in 2000, and on the SIX Swiss Exchange in 2008.

As the Sanofi rumors emerged, Actelion had been in talks about a potential acquisition from Johnson & Johnson (NYSE: JNJ), but both companies have confirmed that these discussions had come to nothing, with Actelion revealing it was in communication with ‘another party’ though not identifying which.