DOW JONES NEWSWIRES Illumina Inc.'s (ILMN) board unanimously rejected Swiss drug maker Roche Holding AG's (ROG.VX, RHHBY) sweetened takeover offer, saying the revised bid is still inadequate and opportunistic. Last week, Roche boosted its takeover bid to $51 a share, up from $44.50 a share, in an effort to reach a friendly deal after some of the U.S. gene-sequencing company's shareholders signaled that they wanted to accelerate the takeover process. The revised offer values Illumina at about $6.5 billion, up from about $5.7 billion previously. Illumina President and Chief Executive Jay T. Flatley said Roche's new offer "dramatically undervalues Illumina and does not adequately reflect Illumina's singular position in an industry poised for extraordinary growth." The company advised its shareholders to back its slate of directors in connection with its April 18 annual meeting and not to tender any shares. A Roche representative wasn't immediately available for comment. Roche wants to buy Illumina to expand its offering of personalized medicines, a growing health-care field in which some of the largest pharmaceutical companies are vying to tailor treatments to patients' unique make-ups by using diagnostic tests. In February, Illumina's board unanimously rejected an earlier bid, calling the Swiss company's offer inadequate. Illumina in February also disclosed that its fourth-quarter earnings dropped 70% as one-time charges masked a stronger core profit. Earlier Monday, Illumina said it projected its first-quarter earnings will at least meet Wall Street estimates and forecast revenue above expectations. The company expects to report first-quarter results later this month. Illumina's shares, which soared after Roche first made a takeover offer in late January, slid 1.3% to $51.95 after it disclosed the rejection. The stock is still up 70% year-to-date amid the acquisition activity. -By Ben Fox Rubin, Dow Jones Newswires; 212-416-3108; ben.rubin@dowjones.com
