​Becton Dickinson in talks with Thermo Fisher, Danaher to divest life sciences unit, FT reports

April 1 (Reuters) - U.S. medical device maker Becton Dickinson ( BDX ) is in talks with Thermo Fisher and Danaher ( DHR ) for a potential sale of its life sciences unit, the Financial Times reported on Tuesday.

Becton Dickinson ( BDX ) had in February announced its plan to separate the unit, which consists of biosciences and diagnostic solutions, after the Financial Times reported that activist Starboard Value had taken a stake in the company and was pushing for the divestiture.

Its shares have fallen about 7.5% since then.

The unit could be worth as much as $21.5 billion, the FT reported, citing analysts at Bank of America.

Becton Dickinson ( BDX ) is also exploring a so-called Reverse Morris trust tax-free deal with smaller diagnostics players such as Waters Corp ( WAT ), Qiagen ( QGEN ) and Revvity ( RVTY ), the report said, citing sources familiar with the matter.

Becton's biosciences and diagnostic solutions unit makes diagnostic products such as those used to detect infectious diseases and cancers.

Becton Dickinson ( BDX ), Thermo Fisher Scientific ( TMO ), Danaher ( DHR ), Waters Corp ( WAT ), Qiagen ( QGEN ) and Revvity ( RVTY ) did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment. (Reporting by Surbhi Misra and Shubham Kalia in Bengaluru; Editing by Varun H K)