Shares of Millipore shot up at the beginning of the week on a whiff of rumors that the company is in play. Late yesterday, the tool-maker made it official, announcing that it has hired Goldman Sachs to guide them through a look at strategic alternatives--including a possible sale.
Quoting sources, Reuters reports that Thermo Fisher Scientific has offered to buy the company for $6 billion. Millipore shares shot up 36 percent on Monday.
Millipore makes lab materials used in drug development. And aside from the official confirmation that a sale may be in the works, the company signaled it plans to stay mum unless it has a transaction to report.
"Millipore has not set a definitive timetable for completion of its evaluation and there can be no assurances that the process will result in any transaction," the company says in a release. "The company does not intend to disclose developments regarding this process unless and until the board of directors has approved a specific transaction."
- check out the Millipore press release
- here's the story from Reuters