ARTICLE | Deals
PAH candidate central to Merck’s $11.5B Acceleron takeout
Pharma views Acceleron’s sotatercept as growth driver following Keytruda patent expiration
September 30, 2021 2:32 PM UTC
Acceleron’s 2017 deal giving it full rights to develop sotatercept in pulmonary hypertension proved to be the key decision that drove value creation at the biotech, leading up to Thursday’s $11.5 billion takeout by Merck.
Days after published reports suggested a deal was likely, Merck & Co. Inc. (NYSE:MRK) said Thursday it will pay $180 per share for Acceleron Pharma Inc. (NASDAQ:XLRN), gaining sotatercept’s rights as the biotech conducts Phase III testing in pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH)...