Taro Pharmaceutical Industries, an Israeli drug company whose U.S. headquarters is in Hawthorne, has rejected a $368 million unsolicited offer from Sun Pharmaceutical Industries of India for the one-third of Taro that it does not already own.
Sun’s bid was 26 percent above Taro’s $19.45 share price the day before the bid was revealed on Oct. 18, but that was considered too low by several of Taro’s minority shareholders. Taro stock topped $24.50 on Nov. 2, and so far in 2012 has not traded below $30.
Taro and Sun have been battling for a number of years. In May 2007, they entered into a merger agreement at $7.75 a share and then raised that to $10.25 before Taro rejected the offer. A ruling by the Israeli supreme court in September 2010 gave Sun voting control of Taro.
The $24.50 a share bid valued Taro at almost $1.1 billion.
Taro produces over-the-counter drugs and drug ingredients. Sun’s biggest market is the U.S., where Caraco Pharmaceutical Labs, a subsidiary, gives it a generic presence. In India, it is strongest in drugs for heart disease, as well as neurological and psychiatric disorders.
