AstraZeneca PLC (LSE:AZN) has bought US biopharmaceutical company Icosavax Inc for up to US$1.1 billion.
The Anglo-Swedish drug maker said the deal will build on its expertise in respiratory syncytial virus (RSV), and strengthen its Vaccines & Immune Therapies late-stage pipeline with Icosavax's lead investigational vaccine candidate, IVX-A12, a “potential first-in- class”.
IVX-A12 is the most advanced investigational vaccine targeting both RSV and hMPV and has a differentiated profile versus currently approved RSV vaccines, the company said.
Phase II data demonstrate that IVX-A12 elicits robust immune responses against both RSV and hMPV one month after vaccination and reconfirm previous immunogenicity data seen in the Phase I trial, the firm added.
AstraZeneca is paying US$800,000 cash upfront as part of the deal and will acquire the cash and marketable securities on Icosavax's balance sheet, which totaled US$229 million at 30 September.
Combined, the upfront and maximum potential contingent value payments represent, if achieved, a transaction value of around US$1.1 billion, a 91% premium to Icosavax's closing market price on 11 December, AstraZeneca said.