Even within the tight-knit community of Irish pharmacists, the news that PHX Ireland, the owner of the LloydsPharmacy chain in Ireland, was acquiring the family-owned McCabes Pharmacy came as something of a surprise. There was not an open market sales process. Instead, a small number of bidders were invited to make a pitch. So, when the announcement was made earlier this week, a number of industry rivals were asking themselves several questions.  For a start, how did the deal come about? And perhaps, more importantly, how much did PHX pay for the 32 outlets within the McCabes Pharmacy network?  The…