Pfizer, Allergan tops list of huge, tax-saving acquisitions

U.S. companies looking to grow through acquisition have been searching fervently in recent years for overseas deals that involve a tax-saving process known as an inversion. These deals enable U.S. multinational companies to lower their tax bills by combining with a company located in a country with a lower tax rate, then reorganizing in that country to take advantage of that rate.

The data firm Dealogic says 27 acquisitions involving an inversion with a U.S. company have been proposed or completed since 2011. Those deals total more than $420 billion in value, with about $344 billion in deals being proposed since the start of 2014. Here are some of the biggest excluding debt, with the year in which they were announced.

2015: Pfizer Inc. buys Allergan Plc for $146.5 billion (pending).

2014: Medtronic Inc. buys Covidien Plc for $49.66 billion (completed).

2013: Liberty Global Inc. buys Virgin Media Inc. for $17.03 billion (completed).

2012: Eaton Corp. buys Cooper Industries Plc for $13.14 billion (completed).

2014: Burger King Worldwide Inc. buys Tim Hortons Inc. for $12.01 billion (completed).

Source: Dealogic