Bio-Techne (TECH) Stock Jumps 20% After Merck’s $11 Billion Takeover Bid

TLDR

• Merck KGaA is acquiring Bio-Techne for $11.3 billion, its largest deal in over a decade
• Merck offered $73 per share, a 24% premium to Bio-Techne’s Wednesday closing price
• Bio-Techne stock jumped 20% to $70.58 in premarket trading Thursday
• The deal is expected to close by late 2026 or early 2027
• Merck expects around 140 million euros in cost savings by the third year after closing

Bio-Techne (TECH) stock surged 20% to $70.58 in premarket trading on Thursday after Germany’s Merck KGaA announced it agreed to buy the company for $11.3 billion.

Bio-Techne Corporation, TECH

Merck is offering $73 per share, a 24% premium over Bio-Techne’s closing price on Wednesday. Merck KGaA stock was also up 3% on the news.

The deal is the largest acquisition Merck KGaA has made in over a decade — the last comparable move was its 2014 purchase of Sigma-Aldrich.

It is also the first major deal under new CEO Kai Beckmann, who took over in May from Belén Garijo.

Bio-Techne supplies research reagents, proteins, antibodies, and analytical instruments used by scientists and drug developers. Its catalog includes 6,000 proteins and 425,000 antibodies.

Merck’s Life Science CEO Jean-Charles Wirth called the catalog a “big, big plus” for customers on a media call Thursday morning.

Strengthening the Life Sciences Business

The acquisition is designed to expand Merck’s presence in advanced biological research and cell and gene therapy.

Merck said the deal reinforces life sciences as the primary growth driver for the company going forward.

Leerink analyst Puneet Souda said Merck appears to be getting an attractive asset with strong long-term potential, despite current pressures in the research tools market.

Some analysts said they did not expect major regulatory hurdles for the transaction.

Funding and Cost Savings

Merck plans to fund the deal through a mix of cash and debt. The company held approximately 2.74 billion euros in cash as of its most recent quarterly results.

Merck expects cost savings of around 140 million euros to be fully realized by the third year after closing.

The deal is expected to close by late 2026 or early 2027.

The move follows a broader M&A strategy that began under Garijo, which included the acquisitions of Exelead, Mirus Bio, and SpringWorks Therapeutics across mRNA manufacturing, cell and gene therapy, and rare diseases.

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