A person familiar with the matter told Reuters that AstraZeneca and Bristol had held talks, confirming an earlier Financial Times report. On Friday, the two had a combined market capitalisation of nearly $US400 billion ($A569 billion), with AstraZeneca valued at $US264.11 billion and Bristol Myers at $US133.41 billion. "A combination with Bristol ⁠does not make strategic or financial sense," said Markus ‌Manns, ​portfolio manager at Union Investment, an AstraZeneca shareholder. Jefferies analysts said in a note they were puzzled by the reports of talks given AstraZeneca had a strong "growth ​and innovation profile". "If there is one company that doesn't need financial engineering, it's AstraZeneca," they ​wrote.