Sanofi’s rumored buyout plans inspire guessing game

The scuttlebutt from Bloomberg late last week about Sanofi-Aventis' interest in acquiring an unidentified drug developer in the pricey neighborhood of $20 billion has triggered a fevered new game of name-the-target. For its part, the Wall Street Journal's Michael Corkery ran a slate of five potential developers that fit the general profile: Genzyme ($13 billion market cap); Biogen Idec ($13 billion); Celgene ($23 billion); Gilead Sciences and Amgen. With a market cap of $50 billion,...

Abraxis’ billionaire chief is adding to his blockbuster bank account

Dr. Patrick Soon-Shiong has been involved in his share of controversies over the years, but none of them have done anything to reduce his net worth. Already worth $4 billion following the sale of APP Pharmaceuticals, the son of Chinese refugees is getting a big bump from the $2.9 billion sale of Abraxis to Celgene. He owns 82 percent of the company, which is primarily devoted to selling the cancer drug Abraxane while working on new approvals for additional indications. "He's done some things...

Celgene strikes $2.9B deal to acquire Abraxis

With an eye to burnishing its oncology rep and its already sizable revenue, Celgene has struck a deal to buy Abraxis BioScience for cash and stock totaling $2.9 billion. The buyout gives Celgene control of Abraxane, now approved for breast cancer treatment, along with its discovery platform and a pipeline of experimental therapies. In exchange for every share of Abraxis, Celgene will pay $58 a share in cash and 0.2617 of a share of Celgene. That values Abraxis' shares at $71.93, a 17...

Agios scores $130M upfront from ambitious Celgene pact

Celgene is cozying up to 2009 Fierce 15 winner Agios Pharmaceuticals with an ambitious licensing deal that includes $120 million in milestones for each successful new drug program that springs off of Agios' platform for cancer metabolism along with a hefty $130 million upfront--an eye-popping figure for a collaboration that is getting started at the preclinical stage. The upfront fee includes an equity investment. Celgene gains an option to commercialize any of the drugs that roll off the...