Valeant Pharmaceuticals (VRX) announces that it has entered into a so-called stalking horse agreement with bankrupt drugmaker Dendreon Corp. for the worldwide rights to its prostate cancer vaccine, Provenge, and certain other assets for $296 million.
The deal, which allows Quebec-based Valeant to be the preferred bidder and also entitled to a break-up fee and expense reimbursement if its bid doesn’t win the subsequent auction for Dendreon’s assets, is subject to higher and better bids and has been extended to Feb. 10 for interested parties to participate in the auction, Dendreon said on Thursday.
Seattle-based Dendreon filed for bankruptcy protection in November, after sales of Provenge, which costs $93,000 for a course of treatment that improves median survival for prostate-cancer patients by just over four months, fell short of expectations and left the company deep in debt.
The deal would be Valeant’s first big move since its failed hostile takeover of Botox maker Allergan, Inc. (AGN).
Shares of Valeant rose $0.92, or 0.57%, on Thursday to close at $161.51. Ticker is up $1.19 in pre-market hours on Friday.
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