APLS - Astellas Pharma agrees to buy Iveric Bio for $5.9 Billion

2023-04-30 21:24:34 ET

Astellas Pharma ( OTCPK:ALPMF ) agreed to acquire Iveric Bio ( NASDAQ: ISEE ) for $5.9 billion to add ophthalmology capabilities to the Japanese pharmaceutical giant.

Under the agreement, Astellas ( OTCPK:ALPMF ) agreed to purchase Iveric Bio ( ISEE ) for $40 a share, representing a 22% premium to Iveric's closing price on Friday. The deal is expected to complete  in the second quarter of Astellas' fiscal year 2023 (third calendar quarter of 2023).

Funds for the purchase consist of newly procured funds from bank loans and issuing of commercial paper totaling approximately 800 billion yen and existing cash on hand, according to a statement. Astellas expects to repay this debt within the next five to seven years. Completion of the deal is not subject to a financing condition.

The Iveric Bio ( ISEE ) deal comes after Bloomberg reported earlier this month that Apellis Pharmaceuticals  ( APLS ), which is also focused on the ophthalmology field, has attracted takeover interest from large pharmaceutical companies. Apellis ( APLS ) shares surged 16% on April 3 amid the takeover report, while Iveric  gained 8.9%.

The Astellas deal for Iveric ( ISEE ) at $40 a share represents a 64% premium the Iveric's share price on March 31,  the day before the takeover speculation on fellow ophthalmology company Apellis ( APLS ).

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