Life Tech (LIFE) Could Be Juicy M&A Target Following Illumina (ILMN) Bid
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Life Technologies Corp. (Nasdaq: LIFE) shares are outperforming the broader stock market Tuesday following reports the company might be a hot takeover target following Roche's (OTCBB: RHHBY) bid for Illumina (Nasdaq: ILMN).
Both Life Tech and Illumina are competing to create a faster, cheaper gene-sequencing instrument. Life Tech is relatively cheap when compared with peers, boasting a current valuation of just 7.4 times FY12 EBITDA expectations.
Of course, Life Tech isn't the only player in the sector, with names like Genomic Health (Nasdaq: GHDX) and Affymetrix (Nasdaq: AFFX) also in the running. None of the three companies commented on the takeover speculation.
Life Tech is the closest to Illumina, producing its desktop-sized Ion Torrent machine which one GARP research analyst said is Illumina's "most formidable" competitor. The analyst noted the machine's sales are continuing on a rapid growth trajectory.
Macquarie thinks a company like GE (NYSE: GE), Novartis (NYSE: NVS), or Siemens (NYSE: SI) each might put in an offer for Life Tech as they look to gain better gene-sequencing technology.
Shares of Life Tech are 1.2 percent better Tuesday, while Genomic Health shares are down 1.5 percent and Affymetrix shares are off 1.3 percent.
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Both Life Tech and Illumina are competing to create a faster, cheaper gene-sequencing instrument. Life Tech is relatively cheap when compared with peers, boasting a current valuation of just 7.4 times FY12 EBITDA expectations.
Of course, Life Tech isn't the only player in the sector, with names like Genomic Health (Nasdaq: GHDX) and Affymetrix (Nasdaq: AFFX) also in the running. None of the three companies commented on the takeover speculation.
Life Tech is the closest to Illumina, producing its desktop-sized Ion Torrent machine which one GARP research analyst said is Illumina's "most formidable" competitor. The analyst noted the machine's sales are continuing on a rapid growth trajectory.
Macquarie thinks a company like GE (NYSE: GE), Novartis (NYSE: NVS), or Siemens (NYSE: SI) each might put in an offer for Life Tech as they look to gain better gene-sequencing technology.
Shares of Life Tech are 1.2 percent better Tuesday, while Genomic Health shares are down 1.5 percent and Affymetrix shares are off 1.3 percent.
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