Exact Sciences Stock Falls Premarket Despite Wall Street Calling For A Triple-Digit Abbott Takeover

William Blair said even conservative modeling supports a takeover price far higher than Exact Sciences’ recent trading range.

• Shares moved premarket as Wall Street highlighted that a potential Abbott deal would likely require a valuation well above prior estimates.
• William Blair said even conservative modeling supports a takeover price far higher than Exact Sciences’ recent trading range.
• The interest comes as Abbott reportedly explores a major acquisition to expand its diagnostics footprint.

Exact Sciences Corp. shares slipped over 2% in pre-market trading on Thursday even as William Blair said a potential takeover by Abbott Laboratories would “likely” need to exceed $100 per share, based on what the firm called “very conservative assumptions.” The decline came despite reports that Abbott is reportedly nearing a deal to acquire the cancer-screening company.

Exact Sciences surged 24% during Wednesday’s session, marking its biggest one-day gain in nearly 16 months. Meanwhile, Abbott’s stock fell nearly 3%.

William Blair Sees Takeout Well Above $80

William Blair said that Exact Sciences currently trades at just under 5x forward sales, while an acquisition would likely require a 6x to 7x sales multiple, implying a premium of over 35%. The brokerage added that its September valuation analysis already showed a fundamental path to at least $80 per share.

The firm argued that Abbott would need to offer “much more than this,” pointing to a price “likely over $100.” William Blair maintains ‘Outperform’ ratings on both Abbott and Exact Sciences.

Analysts See Abbott With Capacity To Strike A Blockbuster Deal

Abbott is reportedly evaluating a transaction that would significantly expand its diagnostics franchise. The company has the capacity for as much as $30 billion in debt-funded M&A, supported by roughly $7 billion in annual free cash flow, according to a Bloomberg report.

Abbott’s diagnostics business was a major boost during the Covid-19 pandemic, but sales have since dwindled. The company has recently focused more on medical devices, with its glucose-monitoring products driving growth.

Cancer Screening Remains Exact Sciences’ Core Strength

Exact Sciences’ flagship colorectal screening test, Cologuard, has been used more than 20 million times since 2014. The company employs more than 6,500 people and operates nine research and lab centers across the U.S., underscoring its scale within the precision-diagnostics landscape.

Stocktwits Users Push For Higher Bids

On Stocktwits, Abbott saw ‘neutral’ sentiment on ‘normal’ message volume, while Exact Sciences drew ‘extremely bullish’ sentiment amid ‘extremely high’ volume.

One user said, “If $ABT is serious, they need to offer 25-30 billion. $EXAS Shouldn't sell for less.”

Another user said, “I dare another large diagnostics to start a bidding war. Where else can you get underpenetrated CRC market leader and MCED in the same market place? Another big player can bring in more salesforce and larger marketing budget to bring Cologuard 1.0 and 2.0 to the next level.”

While Exact Sciences’ stock has risen 24% so far in 2025, Abbott’s stock has declined 3% over the same period.

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