Sanofi prepared to expand, diversify with buyouts

Sanofi-Aventis' new CEO Chris Viehbacher has been sending our new signals regarding his interest in a multibillion-dollar acquisition campaign. The Financial Times reports that Viehbacher told staffers on Friday that he was intent on both expanding as well as diversifying the company's product base. For Viehbacher new buyouts would help him rival the performance of Andrew Witty (photo), who bested him for the top job at Glaxo before Sanofi hired him away.

One report says that the new CEO told workers that Sanofi already has $5.1 billion ready for buyouts.

The European papers have been reporting that Sanofi has been in talks with bankers aimed at raising money for a buyout spree. UBS analysts estimate that the French company could raise anywhere from $22 billion to $26 billion to go after a slate of potential targets that includes Amgen, Biogen Idec and Bristol-Myers Squibb.

The news has been a tonic for shares at BMS, which rose three percent after the reports on Sanofi first hit.

- check out the report from the Financial Times
- read the story from TheStreet

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