Shares of Express Scripts Holding Co. surged Wednesday on a Wall Street Journal report that federal regulators are about to approve the $ 67 billion acquisition of the pharmaceutical benefits manager by Cigna Corp.
The newspaper, citing unidentified sources, also said the Justice Department would approve CVS Corp.'s $ 69 billion acquisition of Aetna Inc.
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Both deals may be approved by antitrust authorities in the coming weeks, sources told the Wall Street Journal.
The Ministry of Justice has identified some competition concerns in the CVS-Aetna agreement. Companies will be required to sell assets related to Medicare drug coverage, the newspaper said, citing unidentified sources.
The scope of asset sales was not known, but WellCare Health Plans Inc. is a potential buyer in the negotiations for assets, according to the report.
According to sources cited by the Journal, federal approval of the Cigna-Express Scripts transaction could apply without the government requiring companies to sell assets.
Companies have already been the subject of rumors and speculation in the market. In June, the shares of the four companies jumped after hours, following a federal judge's decision to support AT & T's acquisition of Time Warner for $ 85 billion. One analyst said that, despite the differences between the cable and health care sectors, the judge's decision against the Department of Justice indicated that other agreements awaiting closure would also be approved.
The two agreements represent a new direction in the health care field as insurance companies connect with drug benefit managers to combine health care and prescription drugs. Patient data will also be collected and analyzed to provide more targeted care.
Shares of Express Scripts closed at $ 89.33, up 3.3%, and Cigna fell by a fraction of 1%, to $ 184.93. Aetna ended the day at $ 201.93, up 1.3%, and CVS rose 1.2% to close at $ 74.89.
