(Adds Ascopiave ; Updates Pfizer , Sotheby's, Keane)
June 17 (Reuters) - The following bids, mergers, acquisitions and disposals were reported by 2015 GMT on Monday:
** Italian regional utility Ascopiave ASCI.MI said it had agreed to place its retail gas and power clients in a joint venture with larger peer Hera HRA.MI in return for a series of gas distribution assets in the north east. Pfizer Inc (NYSE:PFE) PFE.N said it would buy Array Biopharma Inc ARRY.O for $10.64 billion in cash, a deal it hopes will help make it a leader in colon cancer and build up its pipeline of oncology drugs. Franco-Israeli cable magnate Patrick Drahi made a surprise move into the art world by snapping up Sotheby's BID.N in a deal worth $3.7 billion, marking the art auction house's return to private ownership after 31 years. Oilfield services provider Keane Group Inc FRAC.N will merge with rival C&J Energy Services CJ.N in a $746 million deal, giving the companies the much-needed pricing heft in an industry grappling with budget cuts by crude producers. U.S. regional bank Prosperity Bancshares Inc PB.N said it would buy Plano, Texas-based peer LegacyTexas Financial Group Inc LTXB.O for $2.1 billion that would create the second-biggest bank by deposits in the state. Thai oil and gas firm, PTT Exploration and Production Pcl PTTEP.BK said it would buy Partex Holding B.V. from Libson-based Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation for $622 million, its latest acquisition of upstream and midstream assets. Australia's AGL Energy Ltd AGL.AX withdrew a proposal to buy Vocus Group VOC.AX , just days after it offered A$3.02 billion ($2.08 billion) for the telecoms firm, knocking Vocus shares down by a third. U.S. industrial manufacturer Crane Co CR.N said it continues to prefer a "negotiated transaction" with Circor International Inc's CIR.N board, weeks after making a $894 million hostile bid for the smaller rival. Gene therapy company UniQure NV QURE.O is exploring options including a sale amid interest from other pharmaceutical companies looking to expand in gene therapy, Bloomberg reported on Sunday citing people with knowledge of the matter. Kier Group KIE.L will sell its housebuilding and property businesses, cut about 1,200 jobs and suspend its dividend for at least two years in a radical overhaul designed to lower debt and stabilise the business. Credit Suisse CSGN.S said it was in advanced talks on the future of investment product platform InvestLab. British engineering services group Babcock International Group Plc BAB.L confirmed that it had rejected an offer by rival Serco Group SRP.L in January to combine the two companies in a deal that would have created a company worth 4 billion pounds ($5 billion). European buyout group Nordic Capital has agreed to acquire a majority stake in U.S. healthcare software company ArisGlobal LLC, the Wall Street Journal reported on Sunday, citing a person familiar with the matter.