The offer values Qiagen at about 10.8 billion euros including debt and requires an acceptance threshold of 50% of capital plus one share.
The companies cite about 10.8 billion euros, while Bloomberg had reported around 9.6 billion euros ($10.8 billion) before the announcement.
Qiagen's management and supervisory board support the transaction, and completion is expected in mid-2027.
The offer is 40% above the share price before July reports of takeover talks, and Qiagen shares closed at 42.80 euros on Wednesday.
Swedish investor EQT has made an offer to take over Qiagen, a diagnostics group with its German seat in Hilden near Düsseldorf and a headquarters on paper in Venlo. The two companies announced the bid of 46.50 euros per share in cash on Wednesday, 21 October, after the close of trading. Qiagen's management and supervisory board support the transaction, and the company's governing bodies have committed to back the offer. The buying vehicle is expected to include Abu Dhabi's state investment fund and the Canadian pension fund CPP Investment Board. Qiagen's finance chief, Roland Sackers, framed the deal as a benefit for shareholders and a partnership.
“The agreement offers our shareholders an attractive premium.”
The companies put the value of Qiagen, including debt, at about 10.8 billion euros. Before the announcement, Bloomberg had reported a deal of around 9.6 billion euros, or $10.8 billion, citing people familiar with the matter. The offer price is 40% above the share price before reports of possible takeover talks appeared in July, according to NOS. Qiagen shares closed at 42.80 euros on Wednesday, before the offer was announced. Since early July, the shares had gained about 26% as takeover speculation built. The US-listed shares responded only modestly, rising just under one percent after hours.
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Takeover speculation around Qiagen has run for years, and the company confirmed earlier this year that it was weighing strategic options with banks. That search continued under Jonathan Pratt, who took over as chief executive in early September. Pratt has said that as a private company Qiagen could take decisions faster and gain more freedom to invest in opportunities that match its long-term strategy, according to NOS. Bloomberg, as cited by WirtschaftsWoche, reported that the investor KKR had likely also submitted an offer. The key dates from the July reports to the announcement are set out below.
Qiagen employs about 5,400 people across more than 35 sites, including in the United States and China, and generated more than 2 billion dollars in revenue in 2025. Its devices can diagnose infections, cancer and tuberculosis from blood or saliva samples, and police forensics also use them. Demand surged during the Covid pandemic for testing equipment, then slowed once customers' stocks were full. Jean-Charles Wirth, who heads Merck's laboratory business, told WirtschaftsWoche that he expects the market for lab products and services to grow at a mid-single-digit percentage rate each year. More than 3,000 cell and gene therapy studies are running worldwide, and all of them need equipment, filters and specialized liquids.
The offer only goes through if shareholders tender at least 50% of the capital plus one share. The two companies have signed an agreement on a business combination, and Qiagen's governing bodies have committed to support the offer. The transaction is expected to close in mid-2027. If it succeeds, Qiagen would operate as a private company, according to the companies' statement.
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Swedish investor EQT is seeking to take the Dutch-German diagnostics company private, with Abu Dhabi's state investment fund and CPP Investment Board also involved. Qiagen's board backs the offer, and completion is expected in mid-2027.
AI text based on reports by NOS, Wirtschafts Woche, Handelsblatt and other publishers. Published .