Wednesday, February 8, 2012

Illumina Rejects Hostile Bid From Roche

The board of directors of San Diego-based Illumina, the life sciences tools and analysis systems firm, said last night that it has rejected the unsolicited offer from Roche. The company called the offer "grossly inadequate", saying the takeover offer of $44.50 per share in cash "dramatically undervalues" the company and its prospects. Illumina also called the timing of the offer "blatantly opportunistic", saying a drop in its stock price recently was "temporary" due to a softness in research funding. Illumina also pointed out that Roche's bid is below the current trading price for its stock, which was most recently trading around $51.80 per share. Roche made the unsolicited bid--worth $5.7 billion--on January 25th.

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