2023-04-18 11:33:17 ET
Shares of BELLUS Health (NASDAQ: BLU) were up by a whopping 98.9% as of 10:19 a.m. ET Tuesday morning. The big gain came in response to a $2 billion buyout agreement with British pharma giant GSK (NYSE: GSK) .
Per the terms of the deal, GSK has agreed to pay $14.75 per share for the specialty medicines company. This price point represents a 103% premium relative to the biotech's closing price yesterday. The two companies expect the transaction to close no later than the third quarter of 2023.
What brought GSK to the negotiating table? Through this deal, GSK will acquire the late-stage refractory chronic cough (RCC) medicine camlipixant. Camlipixant is a highly selective P2X3 antagonist in phase 3 development as a front-line treatment for adults with RCC. If things go according to plan, camlipixant could hit the market by 2026.
For further details see:
Why BELLUS Health Stock Is Rocketing Higher Today