Shire’s Right-on-the-Money Kilsby Drives Up Deal’s Price

Lock
This article is for subscribers only.

As an investment banker and now chairwoman of Shire Plc, Susan Kilsby has built her reputation on picking a high price target, and sticking to it.

When Fortune Brands Inc. was weighing a bid for the Swedish maker of Absolut vodka in 2008, the company sought advice from Kilsby, then a mergers and acquisitions banker with Credit Suisse AG. She told them the company was worth far more than Fortune was willing to pay.