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Activist investor William “Bill” Ackman said on Tuesday he supports the $66 billion deal in which Actavis PLC will buy Allergan Inc and will withdraw his request for an Allergan special shareholder meeting.
Ackman, who had been fighting alongside Valeant Pharmaceuticals International Inc for control of Allergan, had called for the Allergan meeting to vote out board members and force the company to the table to consider their joint offer. The meeting is scheduled for Dec. 18.
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“We congratulate Actavis and Allergan on their announced transaction. As a result of the deal, we are withdrawing our special meeting request, ” Ackman said in an e-mailed statement.
Ackman’s comments come after Actavis said on Monday it would pay $219 per share for Allergan, billions more than Valeant was willing to pay. Ackman, who owns nearly 10 percent of Allergan, had paper gains of more than $2.3 billion based on that price.
CNBC reported earlier that Ackman will meet with executives from Actavis later this week.
