Valeant Pharmaceuticals International Inc. says a "lack of progress" has led it to withdraw its offer for Irvine, Calif.-based ISTA Pharmaceuticals Inc. of $7.50 (U.S.) per share.
Originally, the Mississauga, Ont.,-based pharmaceutical company had planned a deadline of Jan. 31 for the offer, but on Monday decided to pull out early.
"As we stated last December, we were not interested in participating in a lengthy evaluation process and we are disappointed that the ISTA team was not willing to fully explore our proposal by January 31," said Valeant CEO Michael Pearson.
Valeant has been pursuing ISTA for months, but the target company said it was in talks with a number of parties that have expressed interest in pursuing a transaction.
Valeant is focused on neurology and dermatology with operations primarily in Canada, the United States, Mexico, Brazil, central and eastern Europe and Australia.
ISTA operates the third-largest branded prescription eye care business in the United States.