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Exclusive: Allergan shareholder Paulson & Co urges deal with Shire - sources


    (Reuters) - Allergan Inc shareholder Paulson & Co is urging the Botox maker to merge with specialty pharmaceutical company Shire Plc as a potential alternative to a deal with hostile bidder Valeant Pharmaceuticals , according to two people familiar with the matter.

       The hedge fund, which is ALLERGAN (AGN.NY)s third largest shareholder, told Allergan CEO David Pyott that it would support a deal with SHIRE (SHP.LO) the sources said. The deal would not be structured as a so-called tax inversion, the people said. It could not be learned whether Allergan would pursue such a deal.

        Paulson?s move comes as AbbVie?s $54 billion deal to buy Shire is close to unraveling after the U.S. government changed the rules governing tax inversions.

    Allergan and Paulson declined to comment.

        

    (Reporting by Olivia Oran in New York; additional reporting by Nadia Damouni and Jessica Toonkel; Editing by Chizu Nomiyama)