Follow along as BioSpace keeps you up to date on the latest pharma and biotech M&As, from announcements to closings.
Pictured: A collage of biopharma M&A/ Nicole Bean for BioSpace
After a slow 2022 and early part of 2023, the pace of mergers and acquisitions in the pharmaceutical and biotech sectors has accelerated since the middle of last year, highlighted by Pfizer’s $43 billion takeover of Seagen. Since the calendar turned to 2024, we have seen some blockbusters, including Novo Nordisk’s $16.5 billion purchase agreement for Catalent, Vertex’s planned $4.9 acquisition of Alpine Immune Sciences and the closing of Bristol Myers Squibb’s $4.8 billion acquisition of Mirati Therapeutics and $14 billion takeover of Karuna Therapeutics.
With interest in takeover activity rebounding, BioSpace is pleased to introduce our mergers and acquisitions tracker, which will be updated regularly. Follow along as we keep you up to date on which companies are getting together and which are being absorbed.
May
May 2
Status: Pending
Deal value: Up to $1.75 billion
Novartis announced plans to acquire radiopharmaceutical company Mariana Oncology for $1 billion upfront, with milestones that could add another $750 million to the final price tag. Massachusetts-based Mariana’s pipeline is led by MC-339, a peptidic small molecule engineered to carry a radioactive actinium payload touted as a candidate to treat small cell lung cancer.
April
April 30
Status: Completed
Deal value: Up to $680 million
Harmony Biosciences has acquired Epygenix Therapeutics for $35 million in cash, plus potential development and regulatory milestone payments of $130 million and sales milestones worth as much as $515 million. Among the central nervous system assets Harmony picked up is Epygenix’s lead candidate, clemizole hydrochloride (EPX-100), a 5HT2 agonist currently in a registrational trial for pediatric Dravet syndrome. The compound, which holds FDA Orphan Drug Designation and Rare Pediatric Disease Designation, will enter a Phase III trial for Lennox-Gastaut syndrome in the second half of the year.
April 29
Status: Pending; expected closing Q3
Deal value: $2.4 billion
Ono Pharmaceutical will acquire Deciphera Pharmaceuticals for $25.60 per share in cash. With the pending purchase, ONO will gain the rights to Qinlock, an FDA- and European Commission–approved fourth-line treatment for advanced gastrointestinal stromal tumor in adults. Deciphera’s pipeline also includes the kinase inhibitor vimseltinib, which has already gone through a Phase III trial.
April 23
Status: Pending; expected closing Q3
Deal value: $750 million
Incyte announced that it is buying Escient Pharmaceuticals to gain control of a pipeline led by clinical-phase treatments of atopic dermatitis and other skin conditions. Escient’s lead asset, EP262, is an antagonist of Mas-related G protein-coupled receptor X2 (MRGPRX2), now in Phase Ib/II trials. The company is also developing a MRGPRX4 antagonist in cholestatic pruritus and uremic pruritus.
April 11
Status: Pending; expected closing mid-2024
Deal value: Undisclosed
Eliem Therapeutics has reached an agreement to take over privately held Tenet Medicines in an effort to augment its pipeline in autoantibody-mediated diseases. Eliem expects that Tenet’s TNT119 anti-CD19 antibody will become its lead candidate. The compound, intended to treat autoimmune diseases including systemic lupus erythematosus, immune thrombocytopenia and membranous nephropathy, produced positive preliminary results in a Phase I study and Eliem will be looking to start Phase II clinical development as soon as the deal closes.
Eliem also announced a $120 million private placement that is expected to close at the same time as the acquisition.
April 11
Status: Pending
Deal value: Undisclosed
Century Therapeutics has scooped up privately held Clade Therapeutics in an effort to augment its own induced pluripotent stem cell (iPSC)–derived therapies for immuno-oncology and autoimmune and inflammatory diseases. Clade gives Century additional assets in generating iPSC-derived αβ T cells, Treg cells and B cells. Clade itself acquired startup cell therapy company Gadeta in October.
Century also said that it has landed a $60 million private placement led by Bain Capital Life Sciences. The placement is expected to close Monday.
April 10
Status: Pending; expected closing Q2
Deal value: $4.9 billion
Vertex Pharmaceuticals said that it would acquire clinical-stage immunotherapy company Alpine Immune Sciences in what is the largest biopharma M&A announced in two months. Vertex will pay $65 per share in an all-cash transaction to augment its pipeline of candidates for autoimmune and inflammatory diseases. Alpine’s lead asset povetacicept, a dual antagonist of the BAFF and APRIL cytokines, is currently in a Phase II study in IgA nephropathy, for which it has shown best-in-class potential, according to Vertex.
April 9
Status: Completed
Deal value: Undisclosed
Essential Pharma has acquired its first development-stage asset by purchasing fellow British company Renaissance Pharma. Pediatric rare disease-focused Renaissance features a Phase II immunotherapy known as Hu14.18 that is being investigated for the treatment of high-risk neuroblastoma in partnership with St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital.
April 8
Status: Completed
Deal value: $130 million
CoreRx has wrapped up its takeover of Societal CDMO, first announced Feb. 28. The deal, which was valued at $1.10 per share, took the formerly Nasdaq-listed Societal—a CDMO focused on small molecules—private as a wholly owned subsidiary of CoreRx.
April 5
Status: Completed
Deal value: $208 million
Merck has acquired startup Abceutics in a deal meant to improve the safety of antibody-drug conjugates (ADCs). Abceutics, a University of Buffalo spinout, gives Merck payload-binding selectivity enhancer (PBSE) technology that neutralizes stray payload molecules from ADCs in an effort to reduce the risk of side effects including off-target killing of healthy cells.
April 3
Status: Pending; expected closing Q2
Deal value: $1.8 billion
Genmab has agreed to purchase ProfoundBio in an all-cash transaction that will help the buyer augment its cancer pipeline with a portfolio of antibody-drug conjugates (ADCs). ProfoundBio’s most mature candidate is rinatabart sesutecan (Rina-S), a potentially best-in-class ADC that works by targeting folate receptor alpha (FRα), which is commonly overexpressed in several solid tumors. Rina-S is currently in a Phase I/II clinical trial for ovarian cancer.
April 3
Status: Pending
Deal value: Undisclosed
Paragon Therapeutics has spun out Oruka Therapeutics and simultaneously announced a reverse merger with ARCA Biopharma to take Oruka public. The newly formed Oruka has also closed $275 million in private investments to help it develop biologics for treatment of dermatologic and inflammatory conditions, including plaque psoriasis and psoriatic arthritis. Two lead assets are on track to start clinical trials next year.
April 3
Status: Pending; expected closing Q3
Deal value: Undisclosed
Kintara Therapeutics has reached an agreement to acquire TuHURA Biosciences in a reverse merger that will give Kintara a Nasdaq listing under the TuHURA name. The latter is developing personalize cancer vaccines and other compounds that seek to overcome resistance to immuno-oncology therapies. A week ago, TuHURA agreed to sell some ADC assets targeting tumor-associated MDSCs to Morphogenesis.
April 3
Status: Completed
Deal value: $120 million
Biotech royalty aggregator Xoma has completed its all-cash takeover of precision oncology firm Kinnate Biopharma for an estimated $120 million in cash. Kinnate’s pipeline includes a brain-penetrant MEK inhibitor, a highly selective c-MET inhibitor and a pan-RAF inhibitor in early-stage trials. Xoma announced the deal Feb. 16.
April 2
Status: Completed
Deal value: Undisclosed
Windtree Therapeutics purchased two preclinical assets from Varian Biopharmaceuticals that could be used for various cancers and other rare malignant diseases. The assets are both proprietary atypical protein kinase C iota inhibitors, one a topical therapy and the other in oral formulation. Windtree also said it completed a $1.5 million bridge financing deal. The firm, formerly known as Discovery Laboratories, recently hired an investment banking firm to “evaluate strategic alternatives.”
April 2
Status: Pending; expected closing Q2
Deal value: Undisclosed
Apotex said that it will acquire fellow Canadian firm Searchlight Pharma, which has a portfolio covering women’s health, urogynecology, urology, endocrinology and hospital specialty drugs. Privately held Searchlight itself bought Miravo Healthcare a year ago.
April 2
Status: Completed
Deal value: Undisclosed
Ginkgo Bioworks has acquired the cell therapy assets of Modulus Therapeutics, including CAR-T, CAR-NK and switch receptor libraries. Modulus has been primarily focused on autoimmune diseases.
April 2
Status: Pending; expected closing by early Q3
Deal value: Undisclosed
Aditxt has announced plans to acquire Appili Therapeutics, a Canadian company involved in drug development for infectious diseases and biodefense. Appili and its commercialization partner Saptalis Pharmaceuticals gained FDA approval for Likmez, a liquid reformulation of the antibiotic metronidazole. Another compound, the ATI-1701 Franciscella tularensis vaccine candidate, has $14 million in funding from the U.S. Department of Defense. Closing is contingent upon the cash-strapped Aditxt raising at least $20 million in outside financing; InvestingPro reported that the company currently has a market capitalization of $6.24 million.
April 1
Status: Completed
Deal value: $210 million
Bora Pharmaceuticals has entered the U.S. market by closing its purchase of generic drug manufacturer Upsher-Smith Laboratories from private investors. Upsher-Smith will be operated as a wholly owned subsidiary of Bora, with COO and President Rich Fisher remaining in his post but reporting directly to Bora CEO Bobby Sheng. The generics company recently started offering methimazole tablets, a generic for the thyroid medication Tapazole. The acquisition was first announced Jan. 18.
April 1
Status: Bankruptcy auction pending; expected completion in June
Deal value: $185 million
Merz Therapeutics has entered a bid to acquire Acorda Therapeutics after the struggling Acorda filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in federal court in New York. Neurology-focused Accorda has FDA approvals for Inbrija levodopa inhalation powder for Parkinson’s disease and Ampyra extended-release tablets for multiple sclerosis.
April 1
Status: Completed
Deal value: Undisclosed
Regeneron Pharmaceuticals has completed its purchase of the oncology and autoimmune assets of 2seventy Bio and created a new R&D unit called Regeneron Cell Medicine. About 160 employees from 2seventy have been hired by Regeneron as part of the deal, initially announced Jan. 30. With the divestiture, 2seventy is now solely focused on Abecma (idecabtagene vicleucel), a CAR-T cell therapy for multiple myeloma that the company is co-developing with Bristol Myers Squibb.
March
March 28
Status: Completed
Deal value: Undisclosed
After selling assets and executing a 1-for-240 reverse stock split in Q4 2023, Avalo Therapeutics is back in the buying game, acquiring AlmataBio, which has an anti-IL-1β mAb candidate for treatment of hidradenitis suppurativa. Avalo is planning a Phase II trial for the Almata candidate, now known as AVTX-009. Concurrent with the acquisition, Avalo announced a private placement worth as much as $185 million, including an upfront investment of $115.6 million.
March 28
Status: Initial investment completed
Deal value: Up to $647.5 million
Gilead Sciences is licensing Xilio Therapeutics’ XTX301, a tumor-activated IL-12, and XTX101, a tumor-activated, Fc-enhanced CTLA-4 inhibitor, for $43.5 million upfront, including $30 million in cash and a $13.5 million equity investment in Xilio. Future contingent payments worth as much as $604 million include milestone payments, additional equity investments and the option for Gilead to buy the XTX301 development and commercialization program outright for $75 million.
March 26
Status: Completed
Deal value: Up to $87.5 million
Immunome has completed the acquisition of the AL102 investigational small molecule gamma secretase inhibitor and a related drug candidate from Ayala Pharmaceuticals for $20 million in cash and $30 million in stock, with contingencies for an additional $37.5 million in milestone payments. The deal was first announced Feb. 6.
March 26
Status: Completed
Deal value: Undisclosed
Juvisé Pharmaceuticals has purchased the global commercial rights outside the U.S. and Canada to Ponvory (ponesimod) from Johnson & Johnson’s Actelion Pharmaceuticals. The multiple sclerosis treatment is Juvisé’s first patent-protected compound. Vanda Pharmaceuticals bought the U.S. and Canadian rights to the drug in December.
March 26
Status: Completed
Deal Value: Undisclosed
India-based Veeda Clinical Research has acquired Heads, a CRO based in Ireland that specializes in oncology clinical trials. Heads serves about 25 sites in Europe, North America and the Asia-Pacific region.
March 26
Status: Completed
Deal Value: $90 million
Serina Therapeutics has completed its reverse merger with of AgeX Therapeutics, a transaction that MarketScreener valued at $90 million. Serina’s lead asset, SER-252 (POZ-apomorphine) is in preclinical studies for treatment of advanced Parkinson’s disease. The combined entity will trade on the New York Stock Exchange American market under the ticker symbol SER. The all-stock deal was first announced Aug. 30.
March 25
Status: Pending; expected closing Q2
Deal value: Undisclosed
Nuvation Bio has reached an agreement to acquire AnHeart Therapeutics in an all-stock transaction that Nuvation hopes will accelerate its commercialization timeline to late 2025. AnHeart’s lead asset, taletrectinib, which is in two Phase II studies and has received breakthrough therapy designations from the FDA and China’s National Medical Products Administration to treat advanced or metastatic ROS1-positive non-small cell lung cancer, will become Nuvation’s lead asset upon completion of the acquisition.
March 25
Status: Pending; expected closing Q2
Deal value: Up to $1.1 billion
Novo Nordisk is looking to boost its cardiovascular disease portfolio by acquiring Cardior Pharmaceuticals. At the core of the acquisition is Cardior’s lead candidate CDR132L, an oligonucleotide-based inhibitor that targets miRNA132. The announcement did not release upfront and potential milestone payments, or a per-share price.
March 25
Status: Pending; expected closing Q2
Deal value: Up to $212.5 million
AbbVie announced plans to acquire Landos Biopharma, giving the Big Pharma firm a new candidate for ulcerative colitis and Crohn’s disease as its blockbuster Humira faces increasing competition from biosimilars. The lead asset at Landos, now enrolling a Phase II trial, is NX-13, an oral NLRX1 agonist that facilitates epithelial repair. AbbVie has offered $137.5 million, or $20.42 per share, at closing as well as milestone payments that could add as much as $75 million to the deal.
March 25
Status: Completed
Deal value: Undisclosed
Q32 Bio closed its reverse merger with troubled gene editing company Homology Medicines, concurrent with the completion of a previously announced private placement of $42 million. The combined company, which took the Q32 Bio name and will trade on the Nasdaq as QTTB, has two Phase II trials nearing completion for bempikibart, an anti-IL-7Rα antibody being developed for atopic dermatitis and alopecia areata. Last month, Q32 published preclinical data for another asset, ADX-097, a tissue-targeted complement inhibitor.
March 22
Status: Completed
Deal value: $4.3 billion
Gilead Sciences closed its acquisition of CymaBay Therapeutics for $32.50 per share in cash, first announced Feb. 12. The FDA has granted priority review for CymaBay’s lead candidate, seladelpar, for management of primary biliary cholangitis.
March 20
Status: Pending; expected closing in second half of 2024
Deal value: $1.2 billion
CDMO manufacturer Lonza said that it would acquire a biologics manufacturing plant in Vacaville, Calif., from Roche. The massive site, designed to produce large-scale biologics for Roche’s Genentech, has a total bioreactor capacity of about 330,000 liters.
March 19
Status: Pending; anticipated closing Q2
Deal value: Up to $2.4 billion
AstraZeneca announced an agreement to acquire radiopharma company Fusion Pharmaceuticals for $2 billion, or $21 per share in cash. An unspecified contingent value right of $3 per share could add another $400 million to the value. Fusion CEO John Valliant indicated that the companies will develop next-generation radioconjugate therapies. Fusion’s lead candidate, FPI-2265, targets the prostate-specific membrane antigen to fight metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer.
March 18
Status: Completed
Deal Value: $14 billion
Bristol Myers Squibb has wrapped up its purchase of Karuna Therapeutics, the largest biopharma M&A deal to close so far this year. BMS, which paid $330 per share in cash, is expanding its neuroscience portfolio, notably with the acquisition of the investigational muscarinic antipsychotic KarXT (xanomeline-trospium), Karuna has been developing for schizophrenia and psychosis in Alzheimer’s disease. In November, The FDA accepted the New Drug Application for KarXT in schizophrenia and is set to render its verdict in September 2024.
March 18
Status: Completed
Deal Value: Undisclosed
BiomX has completed its takeover of Gaithersburg, Md.–based clinical-stage company Adaptive Phage Therapeutics (APT) in an all-stock transaction first announced March 6. APT has a Phase II trial underway for a potential treatment of Staphylococcus aureus infections in diabetic foot osteomyelitis patients.
March 14
Status: Pending; anticipated closing Q3
Deal value: Up to $1.05 billion
AstraZeneca announced an agreement to purchase rare disease specialist Amolyt Pharma for $800 million upfront and an unspecified future milestone payment of up to $250 million. AstraZeneca said France-based Amolyt is attractive because its portfolio includes eneboparatide (AZP-3601), a Phase III candidate to treat the rare disease hypoparathyroidism.
March 13
Status: Completed
Deal value: Up to $835 million
Novartis exercised its option to acquire the IFM Due subsidiary of privately held IFM Therapeutics for $90 million up front and potential milestone payments worth as much as $745 million. With this transaction, Novartis secures full rights to IFM Due’s portfolio of STING antagonists, which has been a possibility since the companies entered into a collaboration in 2019.
March 11
Status: Completed
Deal value: $680 million
Merck wrapped up its purchase of oncology drug developer Harpoon Therapeutics, a deal first announced Jan. 8. The Big Pharma firm offered $23 per share for Harpoon, which has developed several T-cell engager drugs, including lead candidate HPN328, which targets the ligand DLL3 in small-cell lung cancer and neuroendocrine tumors. HPN328 is currently in a Phase I/II trial.
March 7
Status: Completed
Deal value: $2 billion
Johnson & Johnson completed its acquisition of Ambrx Biopharma, a drug developer working on antibody-drug conjugates. The deal, announced Jan. 8, priced Ambrx at $28 per share.
March 6
Status: Pending; anticipated closing within 30 days
Deal value: Undisclosed
BiomX announced plans to purchase Gaithersburg, Md.-based clinical-stage company Adaptive Phage Therapeutics (APT) in an all–stock transaction. APT has a Phase II trial underway for a potential treatment of Staphylococcus aureus infections in diabetic foot osteomyelitis patients.
March 5
Status: Pending; anticipated closing late Q2
Deal value: Undisclosed
Akari Therapeutics and Peak Bio announced an all-stock “merger of equals,” though the combined company will carry the Akari name and continue to be traded on the Nasdaq Capital Market under the AKTX ticker symbol. The new partners plan to focus on business development and licensing across therapeutic areas, including cancer, autoimmune conditions and inflammatory diseases.
March 4
Status: Completed
Deal value: Undisclosed
Eilean Therapeutics said it has purchased privately held startup Ness Therapeutics in an all-equity deal. San Diego–based Ness is developing PTPN2 inhibitors for immuno-oncology. Eilean has been testing small molecule inhibitors that target escape mutations in hematologic and solid tumors.
March 4
Status: Pending
Deal value: Up to $82 million plus royalties
Melbourne, Australia-based Telix Pharmaceuticals will acquire privately held radioisotope production technology company ARTMS, of Burnaby, British Columbia. Telix said that, among other things, ARTMS will be able to support production of Zircaix (TLX250-CDx), its investigational PET imaging agent for identifying clear cell renal cell carcinoma. The deal calls for Telix to pay $42.5 million in stock upfront, $15 million in cash at closing and as much as $24.5 million in contingencies, as well as future royalties.
March 1
Status: Closed
Deal value: $170 million
Sandoz closed its purchase of the ophthalmology treatment Cimerli (ranibizumab-eqrn), a biosimilar to Roche’s Lucentis (ranibizumab), from Coherus BioSciences, a deal announced in January. Cimerli is an anti-VEGF antibody that won the FDA’s approval in August 2022.
March 1
Status: Pending
Deal value: Undisclosed
Precisio Biotix Therapeutics announced the purchase of CC Bio, maker of the Zeus bioinformatics platform for antibacterial lysis analysis. Precisio said the Zeus platform is “highly complementary” to its LysiThru lysin screening and engineering system.
March 1
Status: Pending
Deal value: Up to $31 million
Kinnate Biopharma has agreed to sell exarafenib, its investigational pan-RAF inhibitor, to France’s Pierre Fabre Laboratories. Kinnate is in the process of being acquired by Xoma.
February
Feb. 29
Status: Completed
Deal value: Undisclosed
JAMP Pharma Group purchased a shuttered drug manufacturing facility in Lévis, Quebec, that belonged to Pharmalab, a company that went out of business in August 2023. Quebec-based JAMP announced plans to rehire a “significant portion” of the 250 former Pharmalab workers at the site to serve the Canadian market.
Feb. 28
Status: Pending; anticipated closing early Q2
Deal value: $130 million
CoreRx agreed to purchase fellow Florida firm Societal CDMO for $1.10 per share in cash. Societal said the combined company seeks to establish itself as “a preferred CDMO partner in the small molecule space” when the deal closes.
Feb. 28
Status: Pending
Deal value: Undisclosed
Gingko Bioworks announced a trio of acquisitions: Patch Biosciences, Proof Diagnostics and the artificial intelligence and software infrastructure of Reverie Labs. Terms of the sale agreements were not disclosed, but Ginkgo said its board approved stock grants of about $3.5 million to four Reverie employees and nearly $4.3 million to eight Patch Bio employees.
Feb. 26
Status: Pending; anticipated closing Q2
Deal value: $135 million
NGM Biopharmaceuticals agreed to a buyout by affiliates of venture capital firm The Column Group for $1.55 per share. NGM Bio recently presented data on trials of a dual ILT2/ILT4 antagonist antibody and another compound to treat compensated cirrhosis.
Feb. 26
Status: Completed
Deal value: $4.1 billion
Bristol Myers Squibb closed its previously announced $62.50-per-share takeover of radiopharmaceutical developer RayzeBio. The target company’s portfolio includes RYZ101, an SSTR2-targeting radiotherapeutic that is currently in late-stage testing for gastroenteropancreatic neuroendocrine tumors and is also being trialed for small cell lung cancer.
Feb. 22
Status: Pending
Deal value: Up to $117.5 million plus royalties
Rigel Pharmaceuticals is purchasing the U.S. rights to FDA-approved non-small cell lung cancer drug Gavreto (pralsetinib) from Blueprint Medicines for $15 million. Rigel could be on the hook for an additional $97.5 million in commercial milestone payments and $5 million in regulatory milestone compensation, as well as future tiered royalties. Blueprint regained the global rights to Gavreto from Roche in early 2023.
Feb. 22
Status: Completed
Deal value: Up to $1.2 billion
AstraZeneca closed its acquisition of Chinese cell therapy company Gracell Biotechnologies, giving the British pharma giant ownership of the investigational cell therapy GC012F, a dual-targeting autologous CAR-T therapy, as well as Gracell’s FasTCAR platform for CAR-T development. The deal, announced Dec. 23, is valued at $2 per share. Unspecified regulatory milestone payments could bring the total value to $1.2 billion.
Feb. 21
Status: Completed
Deal value: $1 million plus contingencies
BioVaxys Technology completed the purchase of the discovery, preclinical and clinical assets of bankrupt Canadian immuno-oncology developer Immunovaccine Technologies (IMV). BioVaxys made $750,000 in upfront payments and issued $250,000 in stock to IMV creditors. The company also agreed to make unspecified milestone payments, share licensing revenues and offer royalty payments to the creditors. IMV initiated U.S. bankruptcy proceedings in May 2023, Pharmaceutical Technology reported.
Feb. 20
Status: Completed
Deal value: $28.2 million
Syncona closed its acquisition of Freeline Therapeutics for $6.50 per share in cash, in a deal that had been announced in November. Freeline had been in early-stage trials of FLT201, an adeno-associated virus (AAV) candidate gene therapy for Gaucher disease.
Feb. 16
Status: Pending
Deal value: $120 million
Biotech royalty aggregator Xoma announced an agreement to take over precision oncology firm Kinnate Biopharma for an estimated $120 million in cash. Kinnate’s pipeline includes a brain-penetrant MEK inhibitor, a highly selective c-MET inhibitor and exarafenib, a pan-RAF inhibitor in early-stage trials.
Feb. 14
Status: Completed
Deal value: $180 million
Concentra Biosciences completed its acquisition of Theseus Pharmaceuticals, first disclosed Dec. 22. The $4.05-per-share price was at the top end of a previously announced range to purchase Theseus, a clinical-stage company developing pan-variant tyrosine kinase inhibitors and other targeted therapies.
Feb. 12
Status: Pending; anticipated closing Q1
Deal value: $4.3 billion
Gilead Sciences announced plans to acquire CymaBay Therapeutics for $32.50 per share in cash. The news broke the same day CymaBay announced that the FDA accepted the New Drug Application for its lead candidate seladelpar for the management of primary biliary cholangitis.
Feb. 7
Status: Pending
Deal value: Up to $123.1 million
Telix Pharmaceuticals agreed to purchase QSAM Biosciences in an all-stock transaction. Contingent value rights could be worth as much as $90 million on top of the base price. Telix highlighted QSAM’s lead asset, an investigational radiopharmaceutical treatment for primary and metastatic bone cancer called CycloSam (Samarium-153-DOTMP). QSAM had signed a term sheet for the planned acquisition in November that included a $2 million pre-closing collaboration fee from Australia-based Telix to continue its development work.
Feb. 7
Status: Pending
Deal value: Up to $880 million
Jazz Pharmaceuticals signed a definitive agreement to purchase the proprietary Kirsten rat sarcoma virus (KRAS) inhibitor program of Redx Pharma for $10 million upfront and as much as $870 million in development, regulatory and commercial milestone payments, as well as potential royalties. The next milestone is FDA Investigational New Drug clearance, the companies said.
Feb. 6
Status: Pending
Deal value: Up to $87.5 million
Immunome said it would acquire the AL102 investigational small molecule gamma secretase inhibitor and a related drug candidate from Ayala Pharmaceuticals for $50 million in cash and stock, with contingencies for an additional $37.5 million in milestone payments. Ayala subsequently announced that it had completed enrollment in a Phase III study to evaluate AL102 in desmoid tumors.
Feb. 5
Status: Pending; anticipated closing in first half of 2024
Deal value: $2.9 billion
Novartis reached an agreement with MorphoSys to acquire the German biotech for more than $73 per share in cash. At the center of the merger is pelabresib, an investigational small molecule inhibitor of the BET protein which suppresses the expression of abnormal genes involved in cancer development. The companies expect the acquisition to close in the first half of the year.
Feb. 5
Status: Pending; anticipated closing late 2024
Deal value: $16.5 billion
Novo Nordisk made a splash with a $16.5 billion offer—the largest new M&A announcement in the biotech sector so far this year—to take over troubled CDMO Catalent. Novo Holdings, the investment arm of the Novo Nordisk Foundation, will purchase all outstanding Catalent shares for $63.50 each and flip three manufacturing plants to Novo Nordisk for $11 million as the latter seeks to ramp up production of its blockbuster diabetes drug Ozempic and weight-loss medication Wegovy.
For more, see BioSpace‘s coverage of the biggest biotech and pharma M&As going back to January 2023.
January-June 2023
July 2023-February 2024
Neil Versel is the business editor at BioSpace. You can reach him at neil.versel@biospace.com. Follow him on LinkedIn or X.
