Sanofi exploring bid for Actelion amid J&J talks - Bloomberg

(Reuters) - Sanofi is considering a bid for Swiss biotech company Actelion , rivaling an offer made by U.S. healthcare company Johnson & Johnson , Bloomberg reported. French drugmaker Sanofi is working with advisers to assess its options, people familiar with the matter told Bloomberg. (http://bloom.bg/2h8qooh) Sanofi has made its interest known to Actelion but has not decided if it will proceed with a bid, Bloomberg said, citing the sources. To gauge potential interest for Actelion, advisers have also reached out to other drugmakers including Switzerland's Roche Holding AG and Pfizer Inc , the Bloomberg report said. J&J said last month it was in preliminary talks with Actelion about a takeover of Europe's largest biotech firm, which was then valued at about $20 billion. Lung disease specialist Actelion, which confirmed the J&J move then, had warned that there was no certainty of a deal. Sanofi, J&J, Actelion, Roche and Pfizer were not immediately available for comments. (Reporting by Akankshita Mukhopadhyay in Bengaluru; Editing by Maju Samuel)