Pharma giant Merck & Co. (MRK) is buying U.S. biotech company Terns Pharmaceuticals (TERN) for $6.7 billion U.S.
The Terns purchase is the third multibillion-dollar acquisition for Merck over the past year as the company looks to fortify its portfolio of cancer medications and treatments.
Merck’s best-selling cancer drug Keytruda is its losing patent protection in 2028.
Merck said that it will pay $53 U.S. per share in cash for each Terns Pharmaceuticals share, valuing the deal at $6.7 billion U.S.
That acquisition price represents a 6% premium to the recent closing price of TERN stock. The deal is expected to be finalized in the second quarter of this year.
Terns is developing a medicine to treat leukemia that analysts see as a multibillion-dollar drug candidate and one that could eventually rival Novartis’ (NVS) treatment called Scemblix.
Terns’ stock has risen sharply in recent months with excitement building over the company’s leukemia treatment, which has shown promising results in clinical trials.
MRK stock has risen 33% in the last year to trade at $116.37 U.S. per share.
