Pfizer Inc (NYSE:PFE) is reportedly in talks to buy Seagen Inc NASDAQ:SGEN), a cancer drug maker that was last year tied to a potential takeover by Merk before negotiations broke down.
Seagen shares shot up some 13% in pre-market deals to trade at US$182.99 following a Wall Street Journal report on Sunday claiming early-stage takeover talks were underway, citing ‘people familiar with the matter’.
It sees Seagen with a valuation of just over US$30bn, which remains considerably lower than US$40bn, where the stock traded last year during the Merk negotiations.
Seagen is a developer of antibody-drug conjugates, described colloquially as “guided missile” drugs against cancer, with its lead products used in the treatment of lymphoma and breast cancer.