Merck to Buy Cancer Drug Maker Peloton Therapeutics -- Update
May 21 2019 - 8:23AM
Dow Jones News
By Kimberly Chin
Merck & Co. agreed to acquire cancer drug developer Peloton
Therapeutics Inc. for $1.05 billion in cash, adding to a list of
deals in 2019 by pharmaceutical companies looking to bolster their
cancer treatment portfolios.
Merck would acquire all shares outstanding of Peloton through a
subsidiary, the company said Tuesday.
In addition to the initial $1.05 billion consideration, Peloton
shareholders are also eligible to receive an additional $1.15
billion if the company achieves certain regulatory and sales
milestones.
"This acquisition exemplifies Merck's strategy to pursue novel
therapeutic candidates based on exceptionally promising and
innovative research," said Roger Perlmutter, president of Merck
Research Laboratories, in prepared remarks.
The companies expect the transaction to close in the third
quarter.
Peloton, which is based in Dallas, is a closely held drug
discovery and development company focused on oral medicines for
cancer and other non-oncology diseases. Peloton's leading drug
candidate PT2977 is a novel oral inhibitor for late-stage renal
cell carcinoma.
The $123 billion world-wide market for cancer drugs is one of
the biggest pharmaceutical sectors. Earlier this year, Eli Lilly
& Co. acquired Loxo Oncology Inc. for roughly $8 billion in
cash and Bristol-Myers Squibb Co. said it was buying Celgene Corp.
in a deal valued at about $74 billion. The transaction is expected
to close in the third quarter.
Write to Kimberly Chin at kimberly.chin@wsj.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
May 21, 2019 08:08 ET (12:08 GMT)
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