The Federal Trade Commission on Friday said it has reached a deal with drug giant Amgen (NASDAQ:AMGN) to allow the company’s $27.8-billion purchase of Horizon Therapeutics (NASDAQ:HZNP) to move forward.
The FTC filed a lawsuit in May seeking to block the acquisition, arguing that the deal would “stifle competition” in the pharmaceutical industry. But Amgen first moved to buy Horizon in December 2022 in an effort to gain access to the latter’s rare disease assets, including the thyroid eye disease therapy Tepezza.
The buyout was quick to attract regulatory and political scrutiny for its potential antitrust issues.
In its lawsuit, the FTC said that the deal would allow Amgen to “entrench the monopoly positions” of Horizon’s fast-growing medications, including Tepezza, and Krystexxa, a gout medicine.
Specifically, the agency said, Amgen would be able to offer rebates on its existing drugs to pressure insurers and pharmacy benefit managers into favoring the two Horizon products, a strategy known as “cross-market bundling.”
The FTC claimed California-based Amgen has a history of leveraging its drug portfolio to gain advantages over potential rivals.
Amgen is slated to present at the 2023 Wells Fargo Healthcare Conference on Wednesday. Amgen will also present at the Citi Global Healthcare Conference on Thursday.
AMGN shares hiked $2.33 to $258.68, while those for HZNP shares gained $2.82, or 2.5%, to $115.56.
