Merck wins bidding for biotech equipment maker Millipore

Merck agreed to buy Millipore Corp., a supplier of drug-development equipment for biotechnology companies, for about $6 billion in cash, beating a rival offer from Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc.

Merck will pay $107 a share, the Darmstadt, Germany-based company said Monday.

After the acquisition, Merck, the world’s largest producer of liquid crystals used to make flat-panel televisions, will get about 35% of its revenue from chemicals, up from about 25% currently, Merck spokeswoman Phyllis Carter said. Merck will also gain Millipore’s expertise in testing and making biotechnology drugs.

Millipore allows Merck, seller of the cancer drug Erbitux outside the U.S., an opportunity to expand into biotech, analysts said.

Millipore, based in Billerica, Mass., put itself up for sale after getting an unsolicited takeover bid reportedly worth about $95 a share from Thermo Fisher.