Pfizer Inc.’s share price down, faces increased scrutiny over its bid for AstraZeneca, CEO Read to be questioned by UK lawmakers

Pfizer Inc.s Chief Executive Officer Mr. Ian Read is dealing with serious public scrutiny in connection with his bid for the British AstraZeneca Plc. This week the companys CEO is going to be grilled with questions concerning his commitment to the U.K.

Pfizer Inc. made a 106-million-dollar bid for the U.K. AstraZeneca Plc. If the merger is to be finalized, this is expected to be the largest takeover in the countrys history. That is one of the reasons why the company is facing serious scrutiny over the future deal. Both CEO Read and Mr. Pascal Soriot, who is the Chief Executive Officer of AstraZeneca are scheduled to be questioned by the U.K.s Business, Innovation and Skills Committee on May 13th and by the Science and Technology Committee on May 14th.

Two weeks ago, Pfizer announced publicly that it is interested in taking over AstraZeneca and the talks between the two companies have attracted the politicians and policy makers attention. The informal offer of Pfizer, which amounted to 50 pounds (84.26 dollars) per share was rejected by AstraZeneca about a week ago. Since then, the negotiations between the two parts seem to be frozen, which however, hasnt got any effect on the public interest towards the takeover.

The Chief Executive Officer of Pfizer – Mr. Read said in a video interview, which was cited by the Wall Street Journal: “When we looked at AZ, we liked their science. We liked where their science is being done, which is in the U.K., and we know we have good science in the U.K.”

However, the lack of evident and convincing financial logic seems to be one of the most serious problems of Pfizers offer, which seems to be driven by the companys desire to set foot in the U.K. once again. The financial record of the American company is also disturbing. Pfizer Inc. has spent about 240 billion dollars on three large purchases in the last 14 years, while its current market value amounts to 185 billion dollars.

As reported by Bloomberg, the managing director of Democratic Audit – Mr. Richard Berry commented on the upcoming questioning, saying: “The entire political class and media will be spending a couple of hours listening to Pfizer’s business and intellectual case. Sessions where people get a grilling get a lot of attention and I’m sure the media will highlight the most aggressive part.”

Pfizer Inc. was 0.48% down to close at $29.03 per share yesterday, marking a one-year change of +1.08%. According to the information published on CNN Money, the 14 analysts offering 12-month price forecasts for Pfizer Inc. have a median target of 34.50, with a high estimate of 41.00 and a low estimate of 29.00. The median estimate represents a +18.84% increase from the last price of 29.03.