MorphoSys Is Interested in Acquisitions, Moroney Says (Update1)
By Michael Wudonig and Eva von Schaper
Feb. 15 (Bloomberg) -- MorphoSys AG, a German biotech company, is considering further acquisitions, Chief Executive Officer Simon Moroney said today in a televised interview.
MorphoSys may be interested in companies with a price tag from 1 million euros ($1.3 million) to more than 30 million euros, Moroney said. The acquisition of the U.K.'s Serotec Group last year for 20 million pounds ($39 million) showed that the company can handle a deal this size, Moroney said.
The company expanded collaborations with Novartis AG and Pfizer Inc. as drugmakers look to smaller biotechnology firms to fill their pipelines. In December, Pfizer and MorphoSys extended a partnership early, a sign, Moroney said, that the collaboration is ``very successful.''
``Overall it was a very successful quarter for us,'' he said.
Last May, AstraZeneca Plc, facing the possible loss of patents on its three best-selling drugs, agreed to buy Cambridge Antibody Technology Group Plc for 567 million pounds ($1.1 billion), a 67 percent premium over the biotech company's share price.
MorphoSys aims to grow independently, but the company is required to vet any outside offer with the best interests of the shareholders in mind, Moroney said.
The company will meet its 2006 full-year forecast of 42 million euros in sales and 6 million euros in earnings before income and taxes, Moroney said. It does not plan a further share increase, he said.
Shares of MorphoSys slid 64 cents, or 1.1 percent, to 58.23 euros at 3:18 p.m. in Frankfurt.
To contact the reporter on this story: Michael Wudonig in New York at mwudonig1@bloomberg.net ; Eva von Schaper in Munich at evonschaper@bloomberg.net .
Last Updated: February 15, 2007 10:23 EST
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Am 17.2. keine weiteren KEs ankündigen und am 2.5. fällt Moroney ein, das 2006 eine Übernahme an zu wenig Geld gescheitert ist und deshalb eine KE doch nötig sei.
