Pharma & Biotech Most Active Sector in UK M&As

The pharma, medical and biotech (PMB) sector, driven by the Novartis’s £8.6bn acquisition of GlaxoSmithKline’s oncology division, was the most active industry in UK M&A in H1 2014, with a 26.9% market share (£10.1bn), according to Mergermarket’s latest deal round-up.

However M&A activity targeting the United Kingdom - standing at £37.5bn in H1 2014 - represented the lowest half-year value since H1 2010 (£37 bn) and a 12.5% drop from H1 2013 (£42.9bn).

The Novartis acquisition was the only mega-deal in the region so far, and the lack of large transactions  pulled the UK M&A value down in Q1. However, the second quarter witnessed a stark improvement (up 156.5% from Q1, from £10.5bn to £27bn) and represented the highest quarterly value in the country since Q2 2012. Needless to say, the proportion of PMB M&A in the UK and globally would have been considerably larger if the £69bn proposed acquisition of AstraZeneca by Pfizer had gone through.

http://www.mergermarket.com/pdf/MergermarketTrendReport.H12014.UK.pdf