Israeli generics giant Teva appears to be seeking alternative strategies for achieving its targeted acquisition of Netherlands-based Mylan, following the company’s rejection of its informal $40 billion offer.
The news agency Reuters reports that Teva is planning to increase its stake in Mylan to 4.6% from initially 1.8%, which could drive the power struggle into a Dutch court. Since announcing the plans at the beginning of June, the Israeli company is said to have reached a shareholding of 2.2%.
As the plot grows murkier, reports say Mylan’s strategy is to contend that the equity increase violates antitrust US law, as Teva’s purchase of its shares exceeds a $76.3 million threshold.
This, the reports say, would cast doubt on its status of being a Dutch firm. Mylan is incorporated in the Netherlands after a 2014 corporate inversion, but also maintains offices in the US state of Pennsylvania and in the UK.
The two companies continue to slug out their dispute in public, with Mylan demanding that Teva declare its intentions. Teva has yet to make a binding offer as it is said to be awaiting US antitrust approval of its plans.
For Mylan’s executive chairman, Robert Coury, Teva has engaged in a pattern of making noncommittal, unclear inaccurate and non-specific statements to his company’s shareholders.
Reuters quotes people familiar with the matter as saying that a tender offer for Mylan would likely follow Teva's purchase of the additional shares. Other news reports also suggest that the Israeli company wants to muster the additional shares to use against Mylan’s plan to acquire Ireland-domiciled Perrigo for $32 billion.