Bio-Rad Laboratories, Qiagen Mull Merger Of Equals

Bio-Rad Laboratories Inc (NYSE:BIO) is reportedly in talks to merge with Qiagen NV (NYSE:QGEN), but any agreement isn't likely for another few weeks or more, or it may not happen at all.
A deal between Qiagen and Bio-Rad would be the latest tie-up in the medical-diagnostic market. The sector has grown as the pandemic helped increase demand for testing.
According to the Wall Street Journal report, a deal between the two companies could be worth more than $10 billion, making it one of the biggest in the healthcare testing domain after Illumina Inc's (NASDAQ:ILM) $8-billion takeover of cancer-testing firm Grail.
Qiagen was going to be bought by Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc (NYSE:TMO) for about $10 billion in 2020 but did not get shareholder approval. Activist investor Davidson Kempner Capital Management led the charge against the deal, arguing that it undervalued Qiagen.
Last year, nearly $6 trillion of transactions were struck globally, almost half of that in the U.S.
In addition to higher borrowing costs, lack of clarity about the direction of the economy and markets and fear of a tougher antitrust regime have contributed to the recent downturn.
Healthcare, viewed as recession resistant than other sectors, has remained relatively active as companies seek combinations.
Price Action: BIO shares closed at $392.86 on Monday. QGEN stock is down 1.23% at $43.32 during the premarket session on the last check Tuesday.