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.