According to people familiar with the matter, Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc. will an agreement closer to the pharmaceutical testing company PPD Inc. for more than $ 15 billion, which will be the latest mortgage among companies conducting clinical trials and other drug manufacturing services.
The people can conclude an agreement as early as this week, on the assumption that the talks will not fall apart. PPD has a market value of about $ 13.6 billion, while Thermo Fisher is $ 187 billion.
PPD, based in Wilmington, NC, is a so-called contract research organization, a type of company that conducts the study of experimental drugs developed by pharmaceutical companies. PPD also provides laboratory services.
The contract research industry has expanded over the past few years as drugmakers spend money on developing new cancers and other treatments. While CROs, as the companies are known, were hurt when pharmaceutical trials were interrupted in the early days of the pandemic, activity has returned, supplemented by studies that funded Covid-19 drugs and vaccines with drug manufacturers and the government. The industry intends to further benefit from a greater interest in treatments and preventive measures for future pandemics.
PPD reported $ 4.7 billion in revenue last year, an increase of 16%. Its net income has tripled to just over $ 160 million.