Market Cap: $1.77 billion
The $2.2 billion acquisition of clinical stage biotech company Inhibrx (INBX) by Sanofi (SNY) that was announced last week reminded me about the structure of Pfizer’s acquisition of Biohaven (BHVN) that we discussed in our May 2022 mid-month update here.
Much like that deal, Sanofi is only interested in one line of treatment from Inhibrx’s pipeline and will be spinning off the rest of the pipeline into a separate company (SpinCo) that will be funded with $200 million in cash. Upon completion, shareholders of Inhibrx will receive $30 per share in cash, one contingent value right (CVR) worth up to $5 per share if certain milestones are met and one share of SpinCo for every four shares of Inhibrx.
The day the deal was announced Inhibrx rose to $36.30 and has trended upwards to settle at $37.62 as of Friday’s close. On account of the CVR and the SpinCo, we are tracking the deals as a “special conditions” deal in the Merger Arbitrage Tool.
The therapy from Inhibrx’s pipeline that Sanofi would like to retain is INBRX-101 for the treatment of AATD. As outlined by the company, “Alpha-1 antitrypsin deficiency (AATD) is an inherited disease that causes an increased risk of developing pulmonary disease defined by progressive loss of lung tissue and function and is associated with decreased life expectancy.”