Amgen Acquires Five Prime Therapeutics

Amgen Acquires Five Prime Therapeutics

The biotech giant Amgen, Inc. (NASDAQ: AMGN) has announced a new deal for Five Prime Therapeutics (NASDAQ: FPRX), a clinical-stage biotechnology company focused on developing immuno-oncology and targeted cancer therapies. The company collaborates with leading global pharmaceutical companies and has therapies in pre-clinical and clinical development.  Amgen will acquire Five Prime Therapeutics for $38.00 per share in cash, representing an equity value of approximately $1.9 billion. The dollar-per-share amount is a 78% premium to Five Prime’s closing price on March 3, 2021. The transaction comes out to an estimated 232x Five Prime Therapeutics’ annualized revenues. However, the company... Read More »
Merck Boosts Autoimmune Portfolio With New Deal

Merck Boosts Autoimmune Portfolio With New Deal

The pharmaceutical giant Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE: MRK) is back with a new deal, acquiring Pandion Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ: PAND) for $1.85 billion, or $60 per share in cash, a 134% premium to the prior day’s closing price. Pandion Therapeutics is developing novel therapeutics designed to address the unmet needs of patients living with autoimmune diseases. Pandion’s TALON (Therapeutic Autoimmune reguLatOry proteiN) drug design and discovery platform enable the company to create a pipeline of product candidates using immunomodulatory effector modules.  In 2020, the company generated approximately $10.5 million in revenue, but reported a loss in EBITDA of approximately $43.2 million. ... Read More »
MindMed Acquires HealthMode

MindMed Acquires HealthMode

MindMed (OTCQB: MMEDF), a New York City-based biotechnology company, is expanding its platform with a new deal. Last week, the company announced it is acquiring HealthMode, a digital medicine and therapeutics startup that uses artificial intelligence-enabled digital measurement to increase the precision and speed of clinical research and patient monitoring. MindMed will issue 8,250,836 subordinate voting shares at the Feb. 17, 2021 closing price of CAD 5.13, plus approx. CAD 300,000 in cash. Based on the conversion rate from February 18, 2021, the price comes out to approximately U.S. $33.67 million. The acquisition of Healthmode is expected to close by the end of February 2021. MindMed is... Read More »
Humacyte Goes Public Via SPAC

Humacyte Goes Public Via SPAC

Humacyte, Inc. announced last week it is merging with Alpha Healthcare Acquisition Corp. (NASDAQ: AHAC), a special purpose acquisition company (SPAC). Shareholders of Humacyte will get an aggregate of 80 million shares of AHAC’s common stock, or roughly $800 million. Humacyte is a clinical-stage biotechnology platform company developing universally implantable bioengineered human tissue on a commercial scale. The company develops and manufactures acellular tissues to treat a wide range of diseases, injuries and chronic conditions. Humacyte’s initial opportunity, a portfolio of human acellular vessels (HAVs), is currently in late-stage clinical trials targeting multiple vascular... Read More »
Horizon Therapeutics Acquires Viela Bio

Horizon Therapeutics Acquires Viela Bio

Horizon Therapeutics plc (NASDAQ: HZNP) has been a major player in the healthcare M&A market for the last few years. According to search results in our Healthcare Deal Database, the company last reported a deal in April 2020, acquiring Curzion Pharmaceuticals, Inc., a San Diego-based biotechnology firm developing treatments for rare fibrotic diseases, for a modest $45 million. However, Horizon Therapeutics is back with a new deal, buying Viela Bio, Inc. in a $3.05 billion deal.  Viela Bio is a biotechnology company dedicated to the discovery, development and commercialization of novel treatments for autoimmune and severe inflammatory diseases. The company has a substantial pipeline... Read More »
AstraZeneca Buys Alexion In $39 Billion-Mega Deal

AstraZeneca Buys Alexion In $39 Billion-Mega Deal

The global pharmaceutical giant AstraZeneca plc (NYSE: AZN) is back with its fifth deal of the year, and its biggest one at that. AstraZeneca is buying Boston, Massachusetts-based Alexion Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ: ALXN) for $39 billion. Alexion is a global biopharmaceutical company that has pioneered complement inhibition for a broad spectrum of immune-mediated rare diseases caused by uncontrolled activation of the complement system, a vital part of the immune system. According to the terms of the agreement, Alexion shareholders will receive $60 cash and 2.1243 AstraZeneca American Depositary Shares (ADS) per share (each ADS equals 1/2 AZN share). Based on AstraZeneca’s... Read More »