Sanofi Goes Shopping

Not one to be outmaneuvered by his rivals, Sanofi-Aventis SA CEO Chris Viehbacher says he's still looking for deals.

Viehbacher, who already spent $9 billion buying companies this year, told Bloomberg News that he's looking to build his portfolio of vaccines, biotechnology treatments and over-the-counter medicines through more acquisitions.

“There will be more shopping on the horizon,” Viehbacher says.

The former GlaxoSmithKline exec is particularly interested in vaccines, Bloomberg reports. Other companies are showing interest in vaccines as well.

Johnson & Johnson announced this week an 18 percent stake in the Dutch company Crucell NV so it can develop a flu vaccine. Merck & Co. acquired the U.S. marketing rights of Australia-based CSL Ltd.'s flu vaccine.

Paris-based Sanofi said in July it will buy an Indian company, Shantha Biotechnics, which is testing an experimental typhoid vaccine. Another experimental vaccine made by Sanofi was in the news last week after it showed some effectiveness preventing HIV in a government study. It would be many years, if ever, before that vaccine is sold, however.

Building a vaccine business from scratch is expensive, Viehbacher says, noting the high cost of building a manufacturing plant. That's one of the reasons buying a vaccine maker is attractive, he says. While he doesn't rule out a large merger, he tells the wire service that a big deal is "unlikely."