The takeover activity in the biotechnology sector remains unabated – yesterday the next potential billion-dollar deal ran across the news ticker. The British-Swedish pharma giant AstraZeneca swallows the US vaccine developer Icosavax.

The reaction followed immediately. Due to the high takeover premium, the Icosavax share price immediately rose 48% at the start of trading.

AstraZeneca – leader among pharma companies… AstraZeneca is a world leading pharmaceutical company engaged in the development, production and marketing of prescription drugs. The company’s research focuses primarily on the areas of respiratory and immunology, cardiovascular and metabolism, cancer, inflammatory diseases, infections and neurological disorders. Finally, the company offers drugs for diseases such as asthma, heart attack, breast and prostate cancer, diabetes and for the treatment of depression, schizophrenia and bipolar disorders.

The company was formed in 1999 by the merger of the Swedish company Astra, founded in 1913, with the British company Zeneca. Based in London, the company has offices in North and South America, Europe, Asia, Africa and Australia. It has production sites in a total of 16 countries, and its drugs are distributed in over 100 countries.

…. puts up to 1.1 billion dollars on the table for Icosavax Now the pharma giant wants to strengthen its vaccine pipeline with the acquisition of Icosavax. As part of the takeover, AstraZeneca is offering $15 in cash per share plus performance-based payments of up to $5 per share in cash if certain milestones are achieved. The upfront portion represents a premium of 43% on the Icosavax closing price prior to announcement of the takeover offer. If the maximum amount is due, the premium on the closing price of 11 December would be even 91% or on the volume weighted average price of the last 60 days 130%.

AstraZeneca will also acquire the cash and marketable securities in Icosavax’s balance sheet as of 30 September 2023, which amounted to $229 million. So far, the company has not yet generated any sales. In the third quarter, a loss of 22 million dollars was recorded.

Novel RSV Vaccine In Sight With the purchase, AstraZeneca secures access to a novel RSV vaccine from Icosavax, which is in an advanced stage of clinical development. The company focuses on the development of vaccines against infectious diseases using its platform for virus-like protein particles (VLPs). Since VLP vaccines mimic the appearance of naturally occurring viruses to the body’s immune system, they may offer advantages over non-VLP vaccines, including a stronger immune response, broader protection, and longer shelf life.

The vaccine is aimed at both RSV and Human Metapneumovirus (hMPV), two major causes of severe respiratory infections and hospitalizations for older adults.

According to the company, there are currently no treatments or preventative therapies for hMPV and no combination vaccines for RSV.

Takeover activity is likely to remain high For AstraZeneca, this is not the first deal this year. At the beginning of the year, the pharma giant put 1.8 billion dollars on the table for Cincor (heart and kidney medicines). At the beginning of this month, AstraZeneca also concluded a collaboration agreement with Absci worth up to 247 million dollars to develop an antibody drug developed by artificial intelligence for a specific oncological target.

Takeover activity is likely to remain high. In search of new drugs, the pharma giants have been on the buying side for some time. Growth through acquisitions is a tried and tested means in the pharmaceutical world, not least to make investors happy.