HOSTILE BID FOR BOTOX FIRM CLEARS HURDLE

Pershing Square Capital Management and Allergan Inc. have reached a deal to allow the activist investment fund to try to call a special meeting of shareholders to oust six directors at the Botox maker. Pershing has teamed up with Valeant Pharmaceuticals in the company’s hostile takeover bid for Allergan. The agreement ensures Allergan’s poison pill defence won’t be triggered by Pershing Square’s efforts to win support to call a meet- ing. Pershing, which controls 9.7 per cent of Allergan’s shares, says it will begin actively soliciting support to call the meeting.