Soriot should explain the curious case of AstraZeneca’s non-deal

AstraZeneca’s rumoured takeover of Bristol Myers Squibb already looked weird, and was met with a lack of enthusiasm by shareholders

• AstraZeneca falls to third-largest UK company amid US merger talks

Hold the heartburn pills. It seems AstraZeneca is no longer contemplating a takeover of US rival Bristol Myers Squibb (BMS) to create a $400bn (£300bn) pharmaceutical colossus. On Monday, the UK firm’s shares plunged 9% on the FT’s report of preliminary talks. On Wednesday, Reuters said there are no ongoing discussions. Cue a mini-relief rally in AZ’s share price.

Neither company has seen fit to tell its shareholders what was happening, so it’s impossible to know if the talks were a tentative ‘what if?’ corporate flirtation or something more substantial that has been killed, perhaps, by the lack of enthusiasm on the part of AZ’s shareholders.