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.
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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