AstraZeneca was rising strongly on speculation that Pfizer could make a takeover approach for the company, in a transaction valued in the region of 60bn pounds, representing the biggest deal ever in the industry's history and the largest foreign takeover of a UK business on record. While AstraZeneca reportedly rejected the informal offer, Analyst Andrew Baum from Citigroup said he expected Pfizer to "push aggressively ahead with a second approach".GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) also jumped after announcing a massive three-part deal with Swiss pharmaceuticals peer Novartis, which will see shareholders receive a £4bn capital return. Killik maintained a 'buy' recommendation on GSK, saying that the deal will accelerate growth, provide cost savings and generate increased returns.Jefferies gave Shire a boost after it raised its target price for the pharmaceuticals group from 3,400p to 3,550p and kept a 'buy' rating, saying that the recent share-price weakness has presented an "attractive buying opportunity". The broker trimmed its estimates due to "sluggish" first-quarter ADHD prescriptions trends in the States, but still believes that group earnings will growth at a "robust" 13% rate over 2013-2018.Sports Direct shares climbed ahead of the release of the retailer's pre-close trading statement tomorrow, following recent turbulence in its share price after shareholders voted down proposals for a major hand out of share to Chief Executive Mike Ashley. Meanwhile, Randgold, Fresnillo, Rio Tinto and Anglo American were all firmly in the red, hit by concerns about the Chinese economy, which suffered a slowdown in first quarter growth.Ashtead Group fell despite Investec increasing its target price from 800p to 1,100p and keeping a 'buy' recommendation.FTSE 100 - RisersAstraZeneca (AZN) 4,024.50p +6.43%Shire Plc (SHP) 3,096.00p +5.85%GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) 1,645.50p +5.55%Hargreaves Lansdown (HL.) 1,248.00p +3.74%William Hill (WMH) 334.10p +3.73%Sports Direct International (SPD) 824.00p +3.13%Weir Group (WEIR) 2,635.00p +2.81%Experian (EXPN) 1,110.00p +2.68%Royal Mail (RMG) 522.00p +2.55%Melrose Industries (MRO) 288.10p +2.24%FTSE 100 - FallersRandgold Resources Ltd. (RRS) 4,650.00p -1.44%Ashtead Group (AHT) 900.00p -0.83%Fresnillo (FRES) 862.50p -0.63%Standard Chartered (STAN) 1,319.00p -0.49%Rio Tinto (RIO) 3,276.50p -0.36%Babcock International Group (BAB) 1,213.00p -0.25%Royal Dutch Shell 'B' (RDSB) 2,390.00p -0.13%Anglo American (AAL) 1,545.50p -0.10%Mondi (MNDI) 1,003.00p -0.10%Pearson (PSON) 1,061.00p -0.09%NR