ARDS - Aridis inks suvratoxumab licensing agreement with AstraZeneca for up to $126M

Aridis Pharmaceuticals (ARDS) announces that it has entered into an exclusive worldwide licensing agreement with AstraZeneca (AZN) to in-license suvratoxumab, in a deal worth as much as $126M. Suvratoxumab is a late-stage monoclonal antibody ((mAb)) candidate being developed for prevention of pneumonia.Aridis will make an upfront payment of $11M in cash and stock, with AstraZeneca standing to receive a further $115M in milestone payments.AstraZeneca also becomes a shareholder of Aridis through share issuance and has right of first negotiation for future licensing of suvratoxumab.Aridis also highlighted €25M funding from EU Commission's Innovative Medicines for the suvratoxumab's late-stage trial.Shares up nearly 8% premarket.

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Aridis inks suvratoxumab licensing agreement with AstraZeneca for up to $126M