Millennium Pharmaceuticals set to buy LeukoSite for $635 million

Millennium Pharmaceuticals is hoping to gain access to a stronglate-stage pipeline after agreeing to acquire LeukoSite in a stock deal valued at $635 million. Millennium is offering $35.86 per share for LeukoSite, almost double the latter's closing price on the day of the announcement (October 13) and the deal is expected to close in early 2000.

Millennium said that the purchase will give it later-stage drug development ability, a product expected to be on the market in 2000 and a pipeline of several other candidates. Mark Levin, Millennium's chief executive, said that the merger with LeukoSite will be "a major step forward in building the biopharmaceutical company of the future and creating significant shareholder value.'' His comments were echoed by chief financial officer Kevin Starr who said: "we literally overnight will create one of the most robust, integrated pipelines in the industry.''

Campath leads pipeline