Auxilium Pharmaceuticals Inc will purchase Canadian eye drug maker QLT Inc for $346 million in the latest pharma deal aimed at cutting tax bills.Healthcare companies have struck billion-dollar deals to move their headquarters to lower-tax countries, and the Auxilium-QLT deal has been structured to base the combined company in low-tax British Columbia, Canada."The transaction is expected to allow Auxilium to reduce its long-term effective tax rate from the high 30 percent range to roughly 25 percent, and potentially lower in later years," Aegis Capital analyst Raghuram Selvaraju wrote in a note.Valeant Pharmaceuticals International Inc, Canada's biggest publicly listed drugmaker, has cited the lower tax rate as a key advantage as it pursues a hostile bid for Botox-maker Allergan Inc.
Allergan, Inc. is a multi-specialty health care Company focused on developing and commercializing pharmaceuticals, biologics, medical devices and over-the-counter products. Shares of AGN traded higher by 0.11% or $0.19/share to $169.26. In the past year, the shares have traded as low as $82.56 and as high as $172.48. On average, 4612760 shares of AGN exchange hands on a given day and today's volume is recorded at 232558.
Auxilium Pharmaceuticals, Inc. is a specialty biopharmaceutical company focuses on developing and marketing products to predominantly specialist audiences. Shares of AUXL traded higher by 0.57% or $0.12/share to $21.35. In the past year, the shares have traded as low as $16.11 and as high as $32.89. On average, 1529400 shares of AUXL exchange hands on a given day and today's volume is recorded at 3648495.
QLT Inc., is a biotechnology company. The Company is engaged in the development and commercialization of ocular products. Shares of QLT traded higher by 18.62% or $1.08/share to $6.88. In the past year, the shares have traded as low as $3.83 and as high as $8.79. On average, 1800 shares of QLT.TO exchange hands on a given day and today's volume is recorded at 35288.
QLT Inc., is a biotechnology company. The Company is engaged in the development and commercialization of ocular products. Shares of QLTI traded higher by 19.45% or $1.0503/share to $6.45. In the past year, the shares have traded as low as $3.69 and as high as $8.41. On average, 36327 shares of QLTI exchange hands on a given day and today's volume is recorded at 464391.
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