Adds background on CEO exit, Thermo Fisher approach
Nov 15 (Reuters) - Qiagen NV QGEN.O said on Friday it has started reviewing options, including sale, after the genetic testing company received several indications of interest for acquisition, sending its U.S. listed shares up 8.5%.
The company, which has a market capitalization of $8.6 billion as of Thursday's close, said its management will start talks with interested parties as part of the review.
Instruments maker Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc TMO.N approached Qiagen about a potential deal, Bloomberg reported on Wednesday.
There is no guarantee these discussions will lead to a definitive deal, the company said.
Qiagen's Chief Executive Officer Peer Schatz stepped down in October after it posted preliminary Q3 sales below estimates due to significantly weaker-than-expected developments in China.
In a surprise to investors, the maker of diagnostic kits for cancer and tuberculosis had also said it would stop developing next-generation genome sequencing machines and instead collaborate with industry leader Illumina ILMN.O.
(Reporting by Ankur Banerjee in Bengaluru; Editing by Arun Koyyur)
((ankur.banerjee@thomsonreuters.com;; within U.S. +1 646 223 8780, outside U.S. +91 80 6749 6132; Twitter: @AnkurBanerjee17;))
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