Bio-Techne Shareholders Approve Acquisition by Merck KGaA

On September 23, 2026, Bio-Techne Corporation held a special meeting of shareholders where they voted to approve the previously announced acquisition by Merck KGaA, Darmstadt, Germany. Approximately 78.55% of outstanding shares were represented at the meeting, with 121,929,544 votes in favor of the merger agreement and only 1,208,817 against. Notably, a non-binding advisory proposal regarding executive compensation related to the merger was rejected by shareholders. In addition to shareholder approval, the company announced that the waiting period under the Hart-Scott-Rodino (HSR) Antitrust Improvements Act expired on September 18, 2026. The transaction will result in Bio-Techne becoming a wholly-owned subsidiary of Merck KGaA. Bio-Techne currently expects the deal to close by late 2026 or early 2027, pending the satisfaction of remaining customary closing conditions and regulatory approvals. The merger is intended to combine the companies' life sciences portfolios to support workflows from discovery to commercial manufacturing.