Galapagos target for takeover by pharmaceutical companies
Galapagos, the Dutch biotech company, is seen as an important target for large pharmaceutical companies, het Financieele Dagblad reported, citing a Goldman Sachs report about the pharmaceutical industry.
In December, Galapagos CEO Onno van de Stolpe said the company wishes to remain independent but would not be surprised if Illinois based AbbVie tried to stage a takeover, as previously reported. The two companies already work together intensively.
European biotech companies are bought by parties with whom they have already cooperated in more than half the cases. Most of the takeovers happen after the publication of important research results. Galapagos is expected to publish the results of its rheumatism research and potential treatment GLPG634 in March, the report said.
Goldman Sachs expects favourable results and advises a target of EUR 26 per share, the report said.
Yesterday, Galapagos closed at EUR 18.95 per share and had a market cap of EUR 550.84m.
Het Financieele Dagblad