Japan Drug Giant Takeda Tumbles As Shire Recommends $64 Bn Offer

Shares in Tokyo-listed Takeda tumbled Wednesday after it raised its offer for Irish pharmaceutical company Shire to 46 billion ($64 billion), which would represent the largest ever foreign takeover by a Japanese firm.

Tokyo, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 25th Apr, 2018 ) :Shares in Tokyo-listed Takeda tumbled Wednesday after it raised its offer for Irish pharmaceutical company Shire to 46 billion ($64 billion), which would represent the largest ever foreign takeover by a Japanese firm. London-listed Shire said it was "willing to recommend the revised proposal to Shire shareholders subject to satisfactory resolution of the other terms of the possible offer". The latest bid follows a string of lower offers rejected by Shire over the past month.

It comes as Takeda looks to expand abroad in the face of an expected drop in drugs prices at home. Analysts said the buyout would be a smart move by Takeda as it looks to diversify, and could pay off in the long-term. However, the news sent Takeda shares plunging more than nine percent in Tokyo at one point Wednesday morning, with investors worried it would overextend the firm's finances.

At the close it was down 7.02 percent to 4,510 Yen, while Shire opened in London trade up 2.80 percent at �40.40. In its statement on Tuesday night, Shire set a new May 8 deadline for the conclusion of negotiations. The offer is equivalent to �49 a share, Shire said, and represents a 60 percent premium to its closing price on March 27, before Takeda made its interest known. Shire said that on completion of the deal, shareholders would own about 50 percent of the enlarged Takeda, while the new Takeda shares would be listed in Japan and the United States.