Bristol Myers Squibb (BMS) has completed its $14-billion acquisition of Karuna Therapeutics, a Boston-based bio/pharmaceutical company specializing in neuroscience-based drugs. The acquisition was first announced in December 2023. The deal is for a total equity value of $14.0 billion, or $12.7 billion net of estimated cash acquired.  

Karuna’s lead drug candidate is KarXT (xanomeline-trospium), an antipsychotic drug, currently slated for US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) review for later this year (2024). It has a Prescription Drug User Fee Act (PDUFA) target action date of September 26, 2024, for the treatment of schizophrenia in adults. KarXT is also in registrational trials both as an adjunctive therapy to existing standard-of-care agents in schizophrenia and for the treatment of psychosis in patients with Alzheimer’s disease, with potential to expand to additional indications, including bipolar I disorder and Alzheimer’s disease agitation. 

The acquisition also includes early-stage and preclinical assets. With the closing of the deal, Karuna is now a wholly owned subsidiary of BMS.  

Source: Bristol Myers Squibb