(Reuters) -German science and technology group Merck is open to more acquisitions for its Life Science business after announcing in May it would buy Mirus Bio for $600 million, it said ahead of its Capital Markets day on Thursday.
“Our guiding principle is and always has been, the right target, at the right time, for the right price,” CEO Belen Garijo said in a statement.
“For larger future transactions, Merck is focusing on the Life Science business sector,” the firm added.
Shares in the group were up 6.06% at 0727 GMT. ODDO BHF analyst Oliver Metzger attributed the move chiefly to gains in German pharma peer Sartorius, whose shares jumped 13% on Thursday after it said it expects an improved second half.
Merck narrowed expectations for its Life Science business, aiming for annual organic sales growth in a 7-9% range from a previously anticipated 7-10%.
It also said it will intensify the in-licensing of drug candidates in its Healthcare division.
The Hesse-based company changed its outlook for its Healthcare business to “slight growth”, compared to a previously expected mid-single-digit percentage range, due to “recently announced pipeline setbacks”, the statement said.
Merck has reported a string of setbacks in the development of cancer and multiple sclerosis drugs in recent years.
The company however raised the mid-term outlook for its electronics division to a 5-9% range from a previous 3-6%, benefiting from high demand for chips for AI applications.
(Reporting by Tristan Veyet and Marleen Kaesebier in Gdansk, editing by Rachel More and Jan Harvey)
