DiaSorin Weighs Diagnostics Deal for Luminex

(Bloomberg) -- Italian diagnostics company DiaSorin SpA is considering an acquisition of rival Covid-19 testing-kit maker Luminex Corp., according to people familiar with the matter.

DiaSorin is working with advisers to study a potential deal, said the people, who asked to not be identified because discussions are private. No final decision has been made and deliberations may not lead to a transaction, they said.

A representative for DiaSorin declined to comment. A representative for Luminex didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment.

Luminex rose 6.4% to $31.98 at 11:17 a.m. in New York on Thursday, giving the company a market value of about $1.5 billion. DiaSorin rose 3.5% to 163.70 euros in Milan, giving the company a market value of about 9.2 billion euros ($11.3 billion).

The discussions come as health-care dealmaking picks up, including among companies that make products for dealing with the coronavirus pandemic.

Luminex, based in Austin, Texas, makes testing supplies for the clinical diagnostic market, including a test for detecting coronaviruses, according to its website.

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