Valeant to bid for Botox maker Allergan; Activist investor Ackman discloses $4.1B stake

NEW YORK, N.Y. – Valeant Pharmaceuticals has teamed up with activist investor Bill Ackman to make a bid for Botox maker Allergan.

Valeant said Monday that it intends to propose a merger with Allergan using a combination of Valeant stock and cash. The transaction size has not been disclosed, but Valeant expects the cash portion of the deal to be at least $15 billion.

In a separate filing, Ackman’s Pershing Square Capital Management said it owns a 9.7 per cent stake in Allergan worth $4.1 billion. Ackman’s stake would make a Allergan deal worth around $40 billion.

Allergan’s star product is Botox, the anti-wrinkle treatment. The company sold $2 billion in Botox last year, up roughly 12 per cent from the prior year.

Allergan’s stock jumped $28, or 20 per cent, to $170 in after-hours trading.

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