Pfizer Inc. PFE, +0.98% is in talks to merge its off-patent drugs business with generic drugmaker Mylan NV MYL, +0.11% , according to people familiar with the matter, in a deal that would create a giant global seller of lower-priced medicines.
The deal, which hasn’t been completed, could be announced as early as Monday if an agreement is reached, the people said. The companies have discussed a stock deal in which Mylan shareholders would own a little more than 40% of the new entity and Pfizer shareholders the remainder, one of the people said. Pfizer would also receive about $12 billion in proceeds from a new sale of debt, this person said.
Mylan’s market value currently stands at just under $10 billion.
The deal would bring together two businesses whose sales have slowed since former big sellers lost patent protection and began facing lower-priced competition. For Pfizer, these include Lipitor cholesterol pills and the male-impotence drug Viagra. The companies are betting that combining it with Mylan, known for the EpiPen emergency allergy shot, will provide a pathway to reignite sales growth.
An expanded version of this story appears on WSJ.com
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