J&J will pay $28 per share of Ambrx, which represents a premium of about 105% to the stock's last close. Shares of the company surged to $27.24 in premarket trading.
Ambrx is developing therapies that belong to the class of drugs called antibody drug conjugates (ADC), which are described by researchers as "guided missiles" to target cancer cells and minimize damage to healthy tissue.
The deal would help J&J add a promising therapy for cancer and move further into a hot space for drugmakers that has witnessed a rush of deals in recent months.
In November, AbbVie said it would buy ADC-developer ImmunoGen for $10.1 billion in cash. Other deals include Pfizer's $43 billion deal for Seagen and Merck's announcement that it would pay Daiichi Sankyo $5.5 billion to jointly develop three ADCs.
Ambrx's lead treatment, named ARX517, is being tested in early-stage studies in patients with prostate cancer.
J&J to buy cancer therapy developer Ambrx for $2b
FE Team | Published: January 09, 2024 00:41:44
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