Shire reports good start to 2018 as Takeda deal beckons

The biotechnology company said product sales in the three months to the end of March increased 7% to $3.6bn (£2.6bn). The increase was driven a 10% increase to $2.7bn in sales of treatments for rare diseases in fields such as immunology and haematology. Neuroscience sales fell 2% to $918m.

The Dublin-based FTSE 100 company said it also had a strong pipeline of new treatments. Shire’s business has attracted the attention of Takeda, which has made several approaches to buy the company to freshen up its pipeline.

On 25 April Shire said its board was willing to recommend Takeda’s fifth proposal to shareholders subject to ironing out terms. The Japanese company’s indicative offer values Shire at £46bn.

Flemming Ornskov, Shire’s chief executive, said: “Shire is off to a good start in 2018, delivering on our key priorities of commercial execution, pipeline progression, debt pay down, and portfolio optimisation.”

Shire reduced its net debt by $866m to $18.2bn in the quarter. The company agreed on 16 April to sell its oncology business to Servier for $2.4bn.