RE: Rah on Twitter2 Jan 2024 09:45
Actually, the transaction was NOT all about GC012F......................
27 December 2023
AstraZeneca to acquire Gracell, furthering cell therapy
Includes clinical-stage autologous BCMA/CD19 CAR-T therapy targeting haematologic malignancies and autoimmune diseases, and proprietary cell therapy manufacturing platform
AstraZeneca has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire Gracell Biotechnologies Inc. (Gracell, NASDAQ: GRCL), a global clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company developing innovative cell therapies for the treatment of cancer and autoimmune diseases, furthering the AstraZeneca cell therapy ambition.
The proposed acquisition will enrich AstraZenecaÕs growing pipeline of cell therapies with GC012F, a novel, clinical-stage FasTCAR-enabled BCMA and CD19 dual-targeting autologous chimeric antigen receptor T-cell (CAR-T) therapy, a potential new treatment for multiple myeloma, as well as other haematologic malignancies and autoimmune diseases including systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE).
Autologous CAR-T is a type of cell therapy created by reprogramming a patientÕs immune T cells to target disease-causing cells, and the manufacturing process for this type of treatment is complex and time-consuming. The Gracell FasTCAR platform significantly shortens manufacturing time, enhances T cell fitness, and will potentially improve the effectiveness of autologous CAR-T treatment in patients. Future applications of this technology may also include rare diseases.
And the terms of the acquisition................................
The upfront cash portion of the consideration represents a transaction value of approximately $1.0bn, a 62% premium to GracellÕs closing market price on 22nd December 2023 and a 154% premium to the 60-day volume-weighted average price (VWAP) of $3.94 before this announcement. Combined, the upfront and potential contingent value payments represent, if achieved, a transaction value of approximately $1.2bn, an 86% premium to Gracell's closing market price on 22nd December 2023 and a 192% premium to the 60-day VWAP. As part of the transaction, AstraZeneca will acquire the cash, cash equivalents and short-term investments on GracellÕs balance sheet, which totalled $234.1m as of 30th September 2023.
https://www.lse.co.uk/rns/AZN/astrazeneca-acquires-gracell-w06r4e3oam8xu02.html