Genzyme buys SangStat for $600m

pharmafile | October 29, 2003 | News story | Research and Development  

US biotech company Genzyme is to buy SangStat, a California-based company whose lead product Thymoglobulin is a $77 million-a-year treatment for liver transplant rejection.

The $600 million deal continues the sector's trend for consolidation, which include the recent $6.4 billion merger between Biogen and Idec and the acquisition of UK vaccines company Powderject by Chiron for $870 million.

Genzyme agreed a cash offer for SangStat at a 45% premium on the company's closing share price on 1 August. It expects the transaction to lift its earnings after 2004, when its amortisation is completed.

Henri Termeer, Genzyme chairman and chief executive said: "This is a strong strategic fit for Genzyme, which adds a growing product, a strong pipeline, and a skilled team that nicely complements our ongoing programmes in the high potential area of immune mediated diseases."

In addition to Thymoglobulin, Genzyme will gain access to SangStat's European field forces in the UK, Germany, France, Italy and Spain and a product pipeline that includes RDP58, an anti-inflammatory drug, which recently showed positive results in phase II clinical trials.

Genzyme said SangStat's pipeline would complement its own work in immune-mediated diseases, including its collaboration with Cambridge Antibody Technology on CAT-192, a human anti-TGFb monoclonal antibody currently at phase II clinical development for the treatment of diffuse systemic sclerosis.

SangStat has forecast full year 2003 revenues in the range $118 – 136 million. Last year its sales were $120 million to Genzyme $1.1 billion.

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