Analyst Sees Further Pfizer Bid On AstraZenica 'Highly Likely'

Pfizer Inc. (NYSE: PFE) is likely to boost its offer for British drug maker AstraZenica (NYSE: AZN) to $96.28 a share, an analyst said Tuesday.SunTrust's John Boris said a deal would cut Pfizer's tax rate to 20 percent and said potential Treasury inversion action blocking such action is merely “election year rhetoric.”The $127 billion offer envisioned by Boris would tack on 6.3 percent to its earlier bid of $120 billion takeover offer, which AstraZenica rejected back in mid-MayAstraZeneca's American Depositary Receipts were recently down 2 percent at $74.62 from Friday's high but were still up nearly 26 percent for the year.Under British rules, AstraZeneca can starting Tuesday invite it back for talks or Pfizer can make a single "knock-out" bid which it believes would be accepted. Or Pfizer can start a more conventional bidding process over again beginning in November.