NEW YORK (GenomeWeb News) — Biosite has not responded to Inverness Medical Innovations' unsolicited offer to buy the company for $90 a share, Inverness said today, although Biosite issued a statement last Thursday saying it had received the offer and was evaluating it.
Inverness’s offer came just a week after Biosite agreed to be acquired by Beckman Coulter for $85 a share, or around $1.55 billion.
Inverness CEO Ron Zwanziger said his company is “dismayed by Biosite’s silence” concerning the offer, which Inverness said is a “superior proposal.”
Biosite enjoyed a sudden surge of interest after making the Inverness offer public, as its share price jumped almost 10 percent to $92.15 amid anticipation of a bidding war.
Soon thereafter Beckman Coulter reaffirmed its initial offering, calling it a “clearly superior” proposal, and questioned Inverness’s ability to draw together enough money.
Zwanziger today said his company has “arranged the necessary financing commitments” and said the firm is “determined to move forward” with the deal.
“We therefore urge Biosite stockholders to contact their directors and demand that Biosite engage with us immediately," Zwanziger said.
Inverness currently owns 5 percent of Biosite’s shares.