The acquisition of ImClone would fill this gap

Is Sanofi-Aventis again on the acquisition trail The French laboratory presented an offer of $ 3 billion to the society of American biotech ImClone, according to the "New York Times" of yesterday.

ImClone officially announced last week that he had received an offer to purchase shares of an "international grand pharmaceutical group", in September without the identity. This offer was conditioned in support of Carl Icahn, the billionaire his seventies who holds about 14 of the capital of ImClone. He regarded it as too low, and dismissed. ImClone nor Sanofi would comment on the information of the American newspaper. Supported by this rumor, the action ImClone was up more than 4 shortly after the opening of Wall Street yesterday.

This mysterious offer comes at a critical moment for ImClone, which is the second shareholder, Carl Icahn, in open warfare with the management. The turbulent investor won a partial victory yesterday with the resignation of the President and another Director of the company. It claims a total change of direction, considering that the company is badly managed. ImClone was marked by a stock scandal in 2002 and 2003, which had led to the jailing of its founder as well as Martha Stewart, star of American television, for insider trading.

Bound by the patent of the Erbitux

Sanofi and ImClone have some links. In 1994, Rhone-Poulenc, become Sanofi-Aventis, assigned to company a patent in the composition of the cancer drug Erbitux hit. ImClone therefore pays royalties to Sanofi, but they are "not significant" according to the French group. The indirect link passes by Bristol-Myers Squibb. This American laboratory, which is the partner of Sanofi for the commercialization of its antithrombotic Plavix, is also the first shareholder of ImClone, with a participation of 17. This is Bristol-Myers which markets the Erbitux in the United States.

Analysts are divided on the interest of such a takeover for Sanofi. "More than 2.5 billion offer on ImClone would be probably, at the present time, badly received by markets", said Dresdner Kleinwort. Sanofi is indeed weakened since the launch of a generic version of Plavix in the United States last summer.

Fill a gap

For Eric Le Berrigaud, at Raymond James, the operation would instead "a genuine strategic interest". Beyond the Erbitux, which is that reporting of royalties, Sanofi would put their hands on expertise, a portfolio of targeted cancer therapies and biological drug production capacity. Or "it is the major weak point in R & D group," said the Paris analyst. The anti-cancer two stars of the French laboratory, Taxotere and Eloxatin, indeed lose the protection of their patents in the next few years.

These are in addition to chemotherapy drugs, while the future, in the fight against cancer, appears to reside in biotechnology, targeted therapies. "Sanofi is woefully little exposed to biotechnologies, a very present society in the field of cancer treatment", Morgan Stanley analysts notice recently. The acquisition of ImClone would fill this gap.

Other analysts, including those of Aurel Leven and Exane BNP Paribas, believe that the French laboratory might offer significantly more, on... Bristol-Myers Squibb. Valued $ 48 billion, the U.S. Lab would be an attractive target for Sanofi, explain. The French would recover 100 of the benefits of Plavix, must now share with Bristol-Myers. It would allow him to expand his range of drugs and to increase its presence in the United States. The operation would also pull Sanofi first in the world, before the U.S. Pfizer.