Lundbeck To Acquire Alder Biopharma in $1.95-Billion Deal

H. Lundbeck, a Valby, Denmark-based pharmaceutical company, has agreed to acquire Alder Biopharmaceuticals, a Bothell, Washington-based clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company developing therapeutic antibodies for treating migraines, in a deal worth up to $1.95 billion.

Under the agreement, Lundbeck will commence a tender offer for all outstanding shares of Alder, whereby Alder stockholders will be offered an upfront payment of $18 per share in cash, along with one non-tradeable contingent value right that entitles them to an additional $2 per share upon approval of eptinezumab by the European Medicines Agency. This represents a total potential consideration of $20 per share.

Alder is developing eptinezumab for the preventive treatment of migraine in adults. It is a monoclonal antibody (mAb) that is administered as a quarterly 30-minute IV infusion. Aldo says if approved by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA), it will be the first IV calcitonin gene-related peptide therapy for migraine prevention. Alder is also developing ALD1910, an mAb designed to inhibit pituitary adenylate cyclase-activating polypeptide for migraine prevention.

The addition of eptinezumab will add to Lundbeck’s late-stage pipeline, provide access to new capabilities in the mAb field, and expand Lundbeck’s position in its brain disease franchise.

Alder submitted a biologics license application to the FDA for eptinezumab in February 2019, and the FDA has set a Prescription Drug User Fee Act action date of February 21, 2020. Lundbeck expects to submit eptinezumab for approval to regulatory authorities in the European Union during 2020, followed by submission for approval in other regions around the world, including China and Japan.

The Board of Alder has unanimously approved the transaction, and Alder will file a recommendation to shareholders recommending they tender their shares to Lundbeck. The transaction is expected to close in the fourth quarter of 2019.

Source: Alder, Lundbeck

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