Latest news with #Ayvakit
Yahoo
2 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Sanofi to acquire Blueprint for up to $9.5B
This story was originally published on BioPharma Dive. To receive daily news and insights, subscribe to our free daily BioPharma Dive newsletter. Looking to further amp up its immunology business, Sanofi has agreed to acquire Blueprint Medicines in a deal that could be worth as much as $9.5 billion. Blueprint's research revolves around an enzyme made by a gene called KIT. This 'tyrosine kinase' enzyme helps control cell development, division and survival, so if it mutates, it can spur the type of uncontrolled cell growth seen in cancer and some rare diseases. Blueprint already has one medicine approved by the Food and Drug Administration, Ayvakit, and is working on a handful of others, two of which are in human testing. The FDA first approved Ayvakit in early 2020 for a rare kind of hard-to-treat gastrointestinal tumor, and specifically for the small subset of adults who have these tumors and certain mutations. Since then, the agency cleared the medicine as a treatment for both the less and more aggressive forms of 'systemic mastocytosis,' an uncommon disorder where a kind of white blood cell known as a mast cell builds up in the bone marrow, digestive tract, skin and other organs. The accumulation can lead to severe inflammation and organ damage. Last year, Blueprint posted $479 million in net product revenue from Ayvakit. The company used to have another marketed cancer drug, Gavreto, which it was co-developing and commercializing with Roche. But Roche ultimately backed away from that alliance, leading Blueprint to sell away rights to Rigel Pharmaceuticals in early 2024. In a statement announcing the deal, Sanofi highlighted the recent trajectory in Ayvakit sales. They were up more than 60%, for example, between the first quarter of 2024 and the same three-month period this year. Blueprint recorded a $67 million net loss in 2024, compared to a more than half-a-billion-dollar net loss in each of the previous two years. The proposed acquisition 'represents a strategic step forward in our rare and immunology portfolios,' Sanofi CEO Paul Hudson said in the Monday statement. 'It enhances our pipeline and accelerates our transformation into the world's leading immunology company.' Hudson added that his company maintains a 'sizeable capacity for further acquisitions.' After being an active dealmaker over the past few years, the French pharmaceutical giant still had close to 8 billion euros in cash and cash equivalents at the end of March. Sanofi bought the diabetes drug developer Provention Bio for almost $3 billion in 2023 and the rare disease-focused Inhibrix for $2.2 billion in 2024. And just last month, it agreed to spend $470 million on Vigil Neuroscience, a Massachusetts-based biotechnology company touting an Alzheimer's disease drug that just finished an early-stage human study. Similar to its Vigil proposal, Sanofi is offering Blueprint investors a so-called contingent value right that could be worth up to $6 per Blueprint share, provided one of the biotech's experimental drugs, 'BLU-808,' hits certain development and regulatory goals. BLU-808 is in mid-stage testing as a possible treatment for chronic hives and an allergy-related condition that causes runny eyes and a congested nose. Blueprint also believes the drug could be useful in treating allergic asthma and 'mast cell activation syndrome.' Another Blueprint drug, elenestinib, is further along, having advanced to a late-stage study for the slower-moving form of systemic mastocytosis. Sanofi's upfront payment of $9.1 billion values Blueprint shares at $129 apiece, reflecting a premium of about 27% from the biotech's closing stock price on Friday. The transaction is expected to close sometime between July and the end of September, according to Sanofi. Andrew Berens, an analyst at the investment firm Leerink Partners, wrote in a note to clients how his team expected Blueprint to land on the 'strategic radar of large pharma' given Ayvakit is on the path to $1 billion or more in annual sales and the company recently raised its financial guidance for this year. However, the deal came sooner than anticipated, ahead of a key data readout for a rival drug from Cogent Biosciences. Cogent's bezuclastinib is also being evaluated as a treatment for systemic mastocytosis, with results set to arrive in the next couple months. Regardless of how strong or weak those results will be, Berens believes they'd serve as a tailwind for Blueprint 'by removing a key overhang and allowing a strategic acquirer to structure a deal based on assumptions about ... market dynamics.' As such, Cogent's data could have propped up Blueprint's share price, 'which may have been an impetus for Sanofi to do the deal now,' Berens posited. Even so, the analyst still sees Sanofi's bid as a positive for Blueprint and this field of research. Cogent shares were down by about 2% late Monday morning. Recommended Reading Blueprint wins key FDA approval for rare disease drug Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
Yahoo
3 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Why Blueprint Medicines Corporation (BPMC) Skyrocketed On Monday
We recently published a list of . In this article, we are going to take a look at where Blueprint Medicines Corporation (NASDAQ:BPMC) stands against other top-performing stocks on Monday. Blueprint Medicines soared by 26.09 percent on Monday to close at $127.79 each following news that it is set to be acquired by French pharmaceutical giant Sanofi for $9.1 billion. Under the agreement, Sanofi will commence a tender offer to acquire shares of Blueprint Medicines Corporation (NASDAQ:BPMC) at a price of $129 apiece for a total equity value of $9.1 billion. A doctor examining a patient's samples in a modern hospital setting. In addition, shareholders will be able to receive one non-tradable contingent value right (CVR), which will entitle them to two potential milestone payments of $2 and $4 per CVR for the achievement, respectively, of future development and regulatory milestones for BLU-808. The upfront offer price represents a 27-percent premium over Blueprint's closing price on May 30, 2025, and a premium of approximately 34 percent over the 30 trading days of its volume-weighted average price (VWAP) as of May 30, 2025. The purchase will also include the latter's rare immunology disease medicine, Ayvakit/Ayvakyt (avapritinib), the only approved medicine for advanced and indolent systemic mastocytosis (ASM & ISM). READ NEXT: 20 Best AI Stocks To Buy Now and 30 Best Stocks to Buy Now According to Billionaires. Disclosure: None. This article is originally published at Insider Monkey.
Yahoo
3 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Why Blueprint Medicines Corporation (BPMC) Skyrocketed On Monday
We recently published a list of . In this article, we are going to take a look at where Blueprint Medicines Corporation (NASDAQ:BPMC) stands against other top-performing stocks on Monday. Blueprint Medicines soared by 26.09 percent on Monday to close at $127.79 each following news that it is set to be acquired by French pharmaceutical giant Sanofi for $9.1 billion. Under the agreement, Sanofi will commence a tender offer to acquire shares of Blueprint Medicines Corporation (NASDAQ:BPMC) at a price of $129 apiece for a total equity value of $9.1 billion. A doctor examining a patient's samples in a modern hospital setting. In addition, shareholders will be able to receive one non-tradable contingent value right (CVR), which will entitle them to two potential milestone payments of $2 and $4 per CVR for the achievement, respectively, of future development and regulatory milestones for BLU-808. The upfront offer price represents a 27-percent premium over Blueprint's closing price on May 30, 2025, and a premium of approximately 34 percent over the 30 trading days of its volume-weighted average price (VWAP) as of May 30, 2025. The purchase will also include the latter's rare immunology disease medicine, Ayvakit/Ayvakyt (avapritinib), the only approved medicine for advanced and indolent systemic mastocytosis (ASM & ISM). READ NEXT: 20 Best AI Stocks To Buy Now and 30 Best Stocks to Buy Now According to Billionaires. Disclosure: None. This article is originally published at Insider Monkey. Sign in to access your portfolio
Yahoo
3 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Blueprint Medicines Stock Soars as Biotech Agrees to Over $9B Sanofi Takeover
French drugmaker Sanofi said Monday it has agreed to acquire Blueprint Medicines for up to $9.5 billion, sending shares of the Cambridge, Mass.-based biopharma firm soaring in intraday trading. The deal expands Sanofi's immunology pipeline and access to drugs to treat systemic mastocytosis (SM), a rare immunological disease. Sanofi CEO Paul Hudson said that the French company "still retains a sizeable capacity for further acquisitions."French drugmaker Sanofi (SNY) said Monday it has agreed to acquire Blueprint Medicines (BPMC) for up to $9.5 billion, sending shares of the Cambridge, Mass.-based biopharma firm soaring in in intraday trading. The deal expands Sanofi's immunology pipeline and access to drugs to treat systemic mastocytosis (SM), a rare immunological disease, and "other KIT-driven diseases," the company said. Sanofi also noted that the acquisition would give it access to rare immunology disease medicine avapritinib, marketed as Ayvakit or Ayvakyt, which has been approved in the U.S. and the European Union (EU). "The proposed acquisition of Blueprint Medicines represents a strategic step forward in our rare and immunology portfolios," Sanofi CEO Paul Hudson said, adding that the French company "still retains a sizeable capacity for further acquisitions." Under the terms of the Blueprint transaction, Sanofi will pay $129.00 per share in cash or $9.1 billion as well as potential milestone payments. The deal is the latest by the French pharma giant, which last month agreed to buy Alzheimer's disease drug developer Vigil Neuroscience (VIGL). Sanofi shares were down slightly Monday but are up 2% year-to-date through Friday. Blueprint shares are gaining 26% in intraday trading and have risen 16% entering Monday. UPDATE—June 2, 2025: This article has been updated to include refreshed share prices. Read the original article on Investopedia
Yahoo
3 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Sanofi Just Spent $9.5 Billion on a Rare Disease You've Never Heard Of
Sanofi (NASDAQ:SNY) is making another bold move to cement its position in immunology, agreeing to acquire Blueprint Medicines (NASDAQ:BPMC) for $129 a share in cashplus up to $6 in milestone payments tied to future success of its next-gen drug candidate BLU-808. That pegs the total deal at around $9.5 billion, a 40% premium over Blueprint's 30-day average. The prize? Ayvakit, the only approved treatment for systemic mastocytosis (SM)a rare and debilitating immune disorderas well as a pipeline that could unlock broader inflammatory markets. Warning! GuruFocus has detected 1 Warning Sign with SNY. Ayvakit is no science project. The drug pulled in $479 million last year and nearly $150 million in Q1 2025, up more than 60% year-over-year. And this isn't a one-hit wonder. Sanofi's also picking up elenestinib (currently in Phase 2/3) and BLU-808an oral KIT inhibitor that could have applications well beyond SM. The deal could plug directly into Sanofi's immunology machine, which already includes Dupixent, and give it deeper reach among allergists and immunologists. CEO Paul Hudson called the deal a strategic step forward and suggested more acquisitions could be on the horizon. If all goes to plan, the transaction closes by Q3 2025. It won't move the needle on Sanofi's 2025 financials, but it could begin lifting margins and earnings starting in 2026. Sanofi's paying cash and tapping some fresh debt, but the tender offer isn't contingent on financing. For Blueprint, it's a scale-up opportunityand a potential fast-pass to bring its early-stage science to more patients globally. The bet here is simple: Sanofi sees rare immunology not just as a niche, but as a high-margin, high-loyalty growth engineand it's not done building. This article first appeared on GuruFocus.
