BioCentury
ARTICLE | Company News

SuperGen to acquire Astex

April 8, 2011 12:30 AM UTC

SuperGen Inc. (NASDAQ:SUPG) will acquire fellow cancer company Astex Therapeutics Ltd. (Cambridge, U.K.) in a cash and stock deal. Astex shareholders will receive $25 million in cash, plus shares that will represent 35% of the combined company's outstanding shares after the deal closes. Additionally, Astex shareholders will receive an additional $30 million, paid in either stock or cash, over 30 months.

Astex said the merger will provide capital to develop its cancer candidates. The combined company's pipeline will include seven candidates in the clinic, including three Astex compounds in Phase II testing: AT13387 for gastrointestinal stromal tumors (GIST); AT7519 for multiple myeloma (MM); and AT9283 for MM. SuperGen's amuvatinib ( MP-470) is slated to start Phase II testing in small cell lung cancer (SCLC) this half. The combined company also will receive SuperGen's royalties from myelodysplastic syndrome (MDS) drug Dacogen decitabine, which is marketed in North America by Eisai Co. Ltd. (Tokyo:4523; Osaka:4523), and by Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) elsewhere. Dacogen royalties for 2011 are expected to be $52-$55 million. ...