Sanofi exploring bid for Actelion amid J&J talks - Bloomberg

(Reuters) - Sanofi (SASY.PA) is considering a bid for Swiss biotech company Actelion (ATLN.S), rivaling an offer made by U.S. healthcare company Johnson & Johnson (JNJ.N), Bloomberg reported.

French drugmaker Sanofi is working with advisers to assess its options, people familiar with the matter told Bloomberg. (http://bloom.bg/2h8qooh)

Sanofi has made its interest known to Actelion but has not decided if it will proceed with a bid, Bloomberg said, citing the sources.

To gauge potential interest for Actelion, advisers have also reached out to other drugmakers including Switzerland's Roche Holding AG (ROG.S) and Pfizer Inc (PFE.N), the Bloomberg report said.

J&J said last month it was in preliminary talks with Actelion about a takeover of Europe's largest biotech firm, which was then valued at about $20 billion.

Lung disease specialist Actelion, which confirmed the J&J move then, had warned that there was no certainty of a deal.

Sanofi, J&J, Actelion, Roche and Pfizer were not immediately available for comments.

(Reporting by Akankshita Mukhopadhyay in Bengaluru; Editing by Maju Samuel)