Novartis Pharmaceuticals has initiated a takeover offer for German cancer drug company MorphoSys to acquire all of the company's issued shares for 68 euros per share or a total of 2.7 billion euros in cash.
The Zhitong Finance App learned that Novartis Pharmaceuticals (NVS.US) has initiated a takeover offer for German cancer drug company MorphoSys (MOR.US) to acquire all of the company's issued shares for 68 euros per share or a total of 2.7 billion euros in cash.
The offer is a 142% premium over the volume-weighted average price over the past three months. The acceptance period for this offer begins today and ends on May 13, 2024.
According to information, Novartis Pharmaceuticals reached a voluntary public takeover agreement with MorphoSys in February of this year. The deal is subject to customary closing conditions, including acceptance of a takeover offer for at least 65% of MorphoSys tradable shares and regulatory approval.
According to estimates by UBS analysts, Pelabresib, Morphosys' key experimental drug, has a 70% chance of reaching a maximum revenue of 1 billion euros. Morgan Stanley analyst Mark Purcell said the collaboration between the two pharmaceutical companies is strategic because Morphosys has been studying the efficacy of Pelabresib in combination with Jakafi. Novartis sells Jakafi outside of the US.
The deal is expected to close in the first half of 2024. MorphoSys will continue to operate as an independent company until the deal is completed.