Pfizer, the world’s biggest pharmaceutical group, is considering acquiring a large rival drugs company to improve its financial health, in a move that could trigger a fresh round of mergers in the sector. Jeff Kindler, chief executive, said Pfizer was “open to opportunities and constantly looking at those which are big, small and inbetween.” Pfizer’s peers, meanwhile, have increasingly focused on small-scale deals and partnerships, shunning the “mega-mergers” that created industry groups such as Pfizer, AstraZeneca, GSK and Sanofi-Aventis. But many are now awaiting the US giant’s move before responding with deals of their own. Investors argue that Pfizer could strengthen its expansion into biological medicines by purchasing Amgen, the largest independent quoted US biotech group.

This entry was posted by Gwen Robinson on Monday, January 5th, 2009 at 5:36 and is filed under Capital markets, M&A. Tagged with pfizer. Edit this entry.