By Maggie Fick and Sabrina Valle
Aug 5 (Reuters) – There are “no discussions” ongoing between AstraZeneca and Bristol Myers Squibb over a potential deal, a senior source close to the matter told Reuters on Wednesday, quashing the prospect of a mooted mega merger between the drugmakers.
“There is no deal between AstraZeneca and BMS. There never was a deal to be done, and there are no discussions between the companies,” said the source, speaking on condition of anonymity.
On Sunday Reuters reported, citing a person familiar with the situation, that the two drugmakers had held preliminary talks about a possible deal that would create a pharmaceutical behemoth with a combined value of nearly $400 billion.
Reuters was unable to ascertain at that time if the discussions remained ongoing.
The Financial Times first reported news of the talks.
AstraZeneca shares slid around 9% after the reports of the deal talks, while Bristol Myers shares had held more steady.
(Reporting by Maggie Fick and Sabrina Valle; Additional reporting by Amy-Jo Crowley; Editing by Adam Jourdan and Jan Harvey)
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