Iveric Bio Inc shares climbed 16% to $38.01 on Monday after the US drugmaker agreed to be acquired by Japan's Astellas Pharma for $40 per share in cash or total consideration of about $5.9 billion.
Iveric's primary asset is avacincaptad pegol (ACP) which is currently in trials for treating geographic atrophy, the advanced stage of macular degeneration, a common cause of vision loss in the elderly.
The New Jersey-based company is focused on developing treatments for retinal diseases, which fits with Astellas' focus on blindness and regeneration therapies.
The US Food and Drug Administration in February granted priority review of ACP, which targets the C5 protein suspected of causing the growth of scarring associated with the disease, and if approved, the treatment could be commercialized by the end of this year, Reuters reported.
Astellas is Japan's third-largest pharmaceutical company by sales and the Iveric Bio deal would be its fifth major overseas acquisition since 2019.
Astellas is expecting ACP to make up for the loss of sales exclusivity of its mainstay prostate cancer drug Xtandi, its CEO Naoki Okamura said at a briefing.
Astellas anticipates completing the Iveric Bio acquisition in the second quarter of its fiscal year 2023, or the third calendar quarter of 2023.
Contact Sean at sean@proactiveinvestors.com