Roche says it won't extend Illumina offer past Friday deadline

Roche is drawing a line in the sand in its standoff with Illumina. The pharma giant ($RHHBY) says it will not extend its $51-per-share offer for the sequencing company ($ILMN) past its Friday deadline, saying it can't go any further on the public information it has. "We continue to hold Illumina and its management in very high regard but, with access only to public information about Illumina's business and prospects, we do not believe that a price above Roche's offer for Illumina of $51.00 per share would be in the interest of Roche's shareholders," says Roche CEO Severin Schwan in a statement. Illumina has consistently turned a cold shoulder to the bid. Now Illumina has to balance a possible bluff against the potential impact on its share price if the takeover deal goes south. Release