Alpine Immune to be acquired by Vertex

Shares of Seattle, USA-based biotech Alpine Immune Sciences (Nasdaq: ALPN) rose 20% on a takeover rumor by Bloomberg, and leapt a further 36% pre-market to $64.10 when the speculation was confirmed.

US biopharma company Vertex Pharmaceuticals (Nasdaq: VRTX) yesterday confirmed it has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire Alpine for $65 per share (a 67% premium over its Tuesday close) or around $4.9 billion in cash. The transaction was unanimously approved by both the Vertex and Alpine Boards of Directors and is anticipated to close later this quarter.

“Alpine is a compelling strategic fit for Vertex and furthers our ambition of using scientific innovation to create transformative medicines targeting serious diseases with high unmet need in specialty markets,” said Dr Reshma Kewalramani, chief executive and president of Vertex. “We look forward to welcoming the talented Alpine team to Vertex and believe that together we can bring povetacicept, a potential best-in-class treatment for IgAN to patients faster. We also look forward to fully exploring povetacicept’s potential as a ‘pipeline-in-a-product' and adding Alpine’s protein engineering and immunotherapy capabilities to Vertex’s toolbox,” he explained