Roche persists; Ventana resists:
This article was originally published in Clinica
Executive Summary
Continuing its pursuit of Ventana Medical Systems, Roche has extended for the fourth time its offer for shares of the tissue-based diagnostics firm. The Swiss group is seeking to acquire Ventana for $75 per share - a proposal that the Tucson, Arizona company has steadfastly refused to accept - and has pushed the deadline for the tender offer to January 17 2008. So far, less than 0.2% of Ventana's 35 million outstanding shares have been tendered. Ventana's president and CEO Christopher Gleeson branded Roche's offer price as a -non-starter", as it did not reflect the company's full potential. The firm upped its revenue and earnings targets for 2007, after it saw its third-quarter sales jump 28% to reach $75.5m. Ventana attributed its top-line growth to its core advanced staining business gaining sales momentum and market share. The company now expects full-year revenue to be between $296-300m, and earnings to be around $1.34 per share.