Roche ups Illumina bid

Roche (SIX:ROG; OTCQX:RHHBY) increased its unsolicited tender offer to acquire sequencing and microarray company Illumina Inc. (NASDAQ:ILMN) to $51 per share from $44.50. The new price is a 35% premium to Illumina's close of $37.69 on Jan. 24, before the offer was announced. Roche added that the offer is an 88% premium to Illumina's close of $27.17 on Dec. 21, before rumors surfaced of a potential takeout. Illumina said in a statement that its board will review the offer and make a recommendation to shareholders "in due course." The company advised shareholders to take no action at this time. Illumina gained $2.52 to $52.40 on Thursday. ...