Pfizer Buys Medivation and More

Forget those early- to mid-stage clinical candidates. Pfizer Inc. (NYSE: PFE) jumped the line with its $13.5 billion deal for oncology drug maker Medivation Inc. (NASDAQ: MDVN). The target’s primary product is XTANDI® (enzalutamide), an androgen receptor inhibitor, the leading novel hormone therapy for the treatment of prostate cancer. Pfizer will pay $81.50 per share in existing cash, a 21% premium to Medivation’s closing stock price on Friday, August 19, 2016. This deal ends months of bidding for Medivation, which began in April with Sanofi SA’s $52.50 per share (about $9 billion) offer. Medivation turned down the overture, and Sanofi eventually raised its bid to $58.50... Read More »

Pfizer Buys into Gene Therapy

Pfizer’s (NYSE: PFE) interest in the field of gene therapy just got real. The pharma giant just spent $193 million to pick up Bamboo Therapeutics Inc., a privately-held biotechnology company that focuses on therapies for rare and devastating central nervous system (CNS) and neuromuscular diseases. In the first quarter of 2016, Pfizer acquired 22% of Bamboo’s fully diluted equity for $43 million. On August 2, the company announced that it had acquired the remaining equity for an upfront payment of $150 million. Bamboo Therapeutics is also eligible to receive milestone payments of up to $495 million. Since 2014, Pfizer has established gene therapy-based collaborations, research and... Read More »