As the drug world’s M&A carousel continues to turn, British-Swedish drugmaker Astra Zeneca is being eyed as the latest contender to enter the race to buy US biotech firm Medivation, Speculation about a takeover of the prostate cancer specialist has been rampant in US and UK stock market circles for months. According to the latest reports, France’s Sanofi has already made or is planning to make a hostile bid for Medivation, and Switzerland’s Roche, along with Celgene and Gilead of the US, are trying to get a foot in the door.

The London-based Sunday Times newspaper wrote on Apr. 17 that AstraZeneca has been in talks with the US drugmaker and is prepared to make a bid of $10 billion (£7 billion). None of the companies named has acknowledged an interest in the US player that some analysts consider undervalued.

While AstraZeneca CEO Pascal Soriot is under pressure to beef up the company’s cancer franchise and fulfill his promise of doubling revenues by 2020, the CEO earlier this year ruled out large deals unless they could instantly boost earnings. Investors are clamoring for action to push the share price up to the same level Pfizer offered two years ago.

Medivation recently won the backing of the European Medicines Agency’s Committee for Medicinal Products for Human Use for its prostate cancer drug Xtandi (enzalutamide), further enhancing its appeal to established drugmakers seeking to lift their oncology profile.

Clinical trials now in progress are aimed at moving Xtandi further upstream in the prostate cancer treatment regimen and expanding its indications into breast and liver cancer. During the current US presidential campaign, the US biotech firm has come under fire for price gouging as regards this drug. Democratic contender Bernie Sanders and 11 other members of Congress have called for the selling price – currently exceeding $129,000 – to be reduced, as Xtandi was developed using public grants. 

Another drug in the company’s pipeline, Talazoparib, described by analysts as a best-in-class PARP inhibitor in late-stage P3 breast cancer trial, is currently being studied for numerous other cancer indications. Medivation also has exclusive worldwide licensing rights to the immuno-modulatory antibody Pidilizumab, which is set to enter registration trial in B-cell Lymphoma and other applications this year.