Citi thinks pharmaceutical giant Teva is set for a 'material, potentially transformative, transaction'
On Monday, the company announced Timothy Wright as its new head of business development, effective April 13.
Here's Citi's Liav Abrahams in a note Monday:
"We note the commentary in the company's press release, which highlights Mr. Wright's experience in 'leading the transformation of large companies,' and the 'transformative time for both the company and the industry,' which suggests that a material, potentially transformative, transaction, is not off the table for TEVA."
Earlier in March, there was speculation that Teva - which has a market cap of $59 billion - was interested in acquiring Mylan, another pharmaceutical company, according to Investor's Business Daily. Mylan shares rose by more than 6% on the rumors.
Wright has worked in pharmaceuticals for almost 30 years and held several positions in senior management including as president and CEO. According to Abrahams, this hire suggests that Teva may be prepping a deal in the medium term. Sol Barer, the former CEO of Celgene, and Siggi Olafsson, formerly with Actavis, also recently joined the company.
The merger would give Teva a 25% share of the US generic pharmaceuticals market, according to a Morgan Stanley analyst cited by Bidness, and would make Teva the world's largest generics company.
Teva shares were lower and little changed at around $62.54 in late afternoon trading.
Citi rates the stock a "Buy" and has a $70 price target.
(Via The Fly)