Sun Pharma to acquire Concert Pharma and its alopecia candidate

Leading Indian drugmaker Sun Pharmaceutical Industries (BSE: 524715) today announced a definitive agreement under which Sun Pharma will acquire all outstanding shares of US firm Concert Pharmaceuticals (Nasdaq: CNCE), with the news pushing the latter’s shares up more than 20% to $8.30.

The acquisition will be through a tender offer for an upfront payment of $8.00 per share (a 33% premium to Concert’s 30-day average) in cash, or $576 million in equity value. Concert stockholders will also receive a non-tradeable contingent value right (CVR) entitling holders to receive up to an additional $3.50 per share of common stock in cash, payable upon deuruxolitinib achieving certain net sales milestones within specified periods, subject to the terms and conditions contained in a contingent value rights agreement detailing the terms of the CVRs.

The transaction was approved by the boards of directors of both companies, and is expected to be completed in the first quarter of 2023. This marks Sun Pharma; biggest deal since buying generic drugmaker Ranbaxy Laboratories for $3.2 billion in 2014.