Progenics buys Molecular Insight Pharma to expand oncology pipeline

USA-based Progenics Pharmaceuticals (Nasdaq: PGNX) revealed yesterday that it has acquired Molecular Insight Pharmaceuticals, a clinical-stage private biotechnology company with a small molecule chemistry pipeline aimed at enhancing cancer treatment.

Under the terms of the all-stock transaction, Progenics exchanged 4,566,210 shares of its common stock (8.9% of the total outstanding post-transaction shares) for all of the outstanding shares of Molecular Insight, which will become a wholly-owned subsidiary of Progenics. Molecular Insight has no debt. Progenics may make additional milestone payments to the former owners of Molecular Insight based on future commercial sales of the company's compounds. No royalties are due to the former owners of Molecular Insight.

"This is a pivotal moment for Progenics as we advance our plan to become a preeminent oncology company," said Mark R. Baker, chief executive of Progenics, adding: "Molecular Insight's innovative small molecule compounds are an excellent complement to our internally developed oncology programs. This acquisition broadens our oncology pipeline, adding late-stage opportunities and targeting additional types of cancer while deepening our strategic focus on the PSMA antigen, which shows great promise as an oncology target."