NEW YORK (AP) — Shares of Bristol-Myers Squibb Co. jumped Monday amid speculation it could become an acquisition target. Talk of another round of industry consolidation was stirred up by news last Monday that top-selling drugmaker Pfizer Inc. plans to buy Wyeth for $68 billion. Speculation heated up further after the new CEO of Sanofi-Aventis SA, the world’s No. 4 drugmaker, reportedly told employees of the French company that it’s considering acquisitions. Shares of Bristol-Myers — often seen as an acquisition target and specifically mentioned as a possible Sanofi target in a news report Sunday — rose 2.7 percent to close at $21.99 Monday. Earlier in the session, the stock traded as high as $22.79. “It’s speculation that they might be an attractive takeover target. Today’s speculation is Sanofi” as the acquirer, said Deutsche Bank analyst Barbara Ryan. London’s Financial Times reported Sanofi “has held talks with bankers about possible deals,” and could raise more than $20 billion, according to one analyst’s estimate. Bristol-Myers and Sanofi already have a relationship, splitting revenue from blood thinner Plavix, the world’s second-best-selling drug. Chris Viehbacher just became chief executive at Sanofi in December, after having been head of British rival GlaxoSmithKline’s U.S. and then North American pharmaceuticals division. Experts speculate Viehbacher wants to make a mark with a big move. Meanwhile, Ryan thinks part of the jump in Bristol’s shares is related to a Food and Drug Association advisory panel hearing Tuesday on an experimental blood thinner from Eli Lilly & Co. that would compete with Plavix if approved. A lengthy report by FDA reviewers released last Friday indicates they see Lilly’s drug, prasugrel, as being more effective than Plavix but with a higher risk of life-threatening bleeding. Ryan said she thinks that will limit the use of prasugrel. “It doesn’t look like it would have the ammo to derail Plavix” sales, she said.
