Pfizer set to buy Medivation Inc in $14 billion deal

Pfizer is set to buy the biotech company Medivation for approx. $14 billion, the company said in a statement. The board of directors of both the companies have unanimously approved the merger, the statement added. 

“The proposed acquisition of Medivation is expected to immediately accelerate revenue growth and drive overall earnings growth potential for Pfizer,” said Ian Read, Pfizer chairman and chief executive officer. The transaction is a snub to the French pharmaceutical group Sanofi, which earlier offered $ 58 a share, which Medivation rejected in last month. The company had turned down an uninvited offer worth about $ 10 billion from Sanofi as “not in the best interests” of its shareholders.

The purchase of Medivation, if approved by regulators, would be Pfizer’s biggest buy since it bought the medical device company Hospira last year for $17 billion.

According to media reports, the company’s founder said Pfizer, by contrast, was the ideal marriage partner. “We believe the combination with Pfizer is the right next step in our growth trajectory and is a testament to the passion and dedication by which the Medivation team has delivered on our mission to profoundly transform patients’ lives through medically innovative therapies,” said David Hung, founder, president and CEO of Medivation.

“This compelling transaction will deliver significant and immediate value to our stockholders and provides new opportunities for our employees as part of a larger company.”

By purchasing Medivation, Pfizer would add to its portfolio the drug Xtandi, a promising treatment against prostate cancer that analysts estimate will generate some $ 1.33 billion in annual sales by 2020. The offer for Medivation which specializes in cancer treatments, is far beyond the company’s market value of $1.1 billion.