Tobacco giant Philip Morris on Friday swooped for UK pharmaceuticals company Vectura Group with a £1.045bn recommended offer.
The 150p-a-share offer from the maker of Marlboro cigarettes trumps a 136p offer from private equity group Carlyle in May that valued Vectura, which focuses on inhaled medicines, at £958m.
Philip Morris said it was expanding into products beyond tobacco and nicotine “as part of a natural evolution into a broader healthcare and wellness company” with the ultimate aim of disrupting its own industry and ending smoking.
