Bioverativ Inc (NASDAQ: BIVV) rocketed in Monday trading, as French-based Sanofi SA (NYSE: SNY) announced plans to acquire Bioverativ for $11.6 billion, or $105 per share in cash.
It’s the biggest deal in seven years for the French drug maker, which it said would strengthen its presence in treatments for rare diseases.
The move comes at a time of renewed interest by large drugmakers in smaller biotech firms and predictions by some experts that 2018 will see a substantial pick-up in mergers and acquisitions.
Sanofi has agreed to buy all of the outstanding shares of Bioverativ for $105 per share in cash, marking a premium of 64% to Bioverativ's closing price on January 19.
Bioverativ, a maker of hemophilia drugs, was separated from Biogen early last year.
The agreed transaction marks Sanofi's successful return to deal making after its failure to land major takeovers in recent years. It is its biggest acquisition since the 2011 takeover of U.S. biotech company Genzyme for around $20 billion.
Sanofi lost out on buying California-based cancer specialist Medivation to Pfizer in 2016, and also missed acquiring Swiss biotech company Actelion, which was bought by Johnson & Johnson last year.
"With Bioverativ, we welcome a leader in the growing hemophilia market," Sanofi Chief Executive Olivier Brandicourt said.
Sanofi said the sector had around $10 billion in annual sales, dealing with 181,000 people affected worldwide. It added that hemophilia represented the largest market for rare diseases and was set to grow by more than 7% per year through to 2022.
Sanofi shares retreated $1.47, or 3.3%, to $43.13, while shares for Bioverativ popped $39.50, or 61.6%, to $103.61
