Amylin preps for 2nd round after 3 bids boost appeal

Amylin Pharmaceuticals Inc. is preparing for a second round of bids after attracting offers that value the diabetes drugmaker at $25 to $29 per share, said people with knowledge of the process.

AstraZeneca PLC joined Sanofi, Merck & Co. and Bristol-Myers Squibb Co. in making first-round proposals, said the people, who declined to be identified as talks are private. Pfizer Inc., which made a bid on the lower end of the range, is dropping out of the process, said one of the people.

The suitors gave ranges for their bids, with some offering $25 to $28 per share and others $26 to $29, said one person. Such bids would value Amylin, whose treatments include the diabetes drugs Bydureon and Byetta, at $4.1 billion to $4.7 billion, based on the shares outstanding as of April 26. Amylin, in San Diego, is asking suitors to submit revised offers by the end of June, with a sale likely in July, said two of these people.

AstraZeneca may have the greatest need, said Michael King, an analyst at Rodman & Renshaw. “They seem to be struggling. I think they’re under a lot of pressure to do something to grow sales or they themselves could be acquired.”

David Brennan retired Friday as chief executive officer. The London company’s Seroquel lost U.S. patent protection in March. Analysts expect the antipsychotic drug’s sales to drop to