[U, X2] Rumors Confirmed: Merck To Acquire Acceleron... For Very Little Over Recent Market Cap Figures... Good Candidate Add Ons / Fold Ins, For Kenilworth.

Clearly Mr. Davis knows, based on the hard-scrabble lessons Fred Hassan learned (about being a one trick pony company, while at the helm of legacy Schering-Plough), that as great as Keytruda^® is, and will continue to be, in oncology. . . the company must be prepared for what happens when (not if) something even better comes along in immuno-oncology. This is the first larger Davis-era move. [We will keep a close financial eye on it, to see how it turns out. Smile. . . .]

So it is. . . that Avoro Capital, a roughly seven per cent holder of legacy Acceleron is. . . already complaining -- that Mr. Davis essentially fleeced Habib Dable, the CEO of the target. Indeed -- Avoro may be. . . right. [That said, I doubt Avoro is seriously thinking of some form of street sweep, or proxy battle -- or courtship of a white knight, to more or less scuttle the deal, for a higher priced one. But we shall, as ever. . . see.]

Mother Merck is in fact spending only a relatively modest amount in premium, for a high-potential Phase 1b/2 developed candidate called sotatercept, as a novel future franchise, in the pulmonary / hypertension arena, all while getting an on-market nice pipe of revenue (with BMS), in erythroid maturation (improving hemoglobin levels in rare disease patients), from the Reblozyl^® franchise. That is a pure royalty payment stream as BMS does all the manufacturing -- and Acceleron just banks a check each month. Looks pretty. . . smart, at first blush here -- as it keeps BMS from getting all that gravy, as well:

. . .Acceleron is focused on harnessing the power of the transforming growth factor (TGF)-beta superfamily of proteins that is known to play a central role in the regulation of cell growth, differentiation and repair. Acceleron’s lead therapeutic candidate, sotatercept, has a novel mechanism of action with the potential to improve short-term and/or long-term clinical outcomes in patients with pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH), a progressive and life-threatening blood vessel disorder. Sotatercept is in Phase 3 trials as add-on to current standard of care for the treatment of PAH.

“Strategic business development is a top priority for Merck as we look to drive sustainable growth and further bolster and balance our pipeline with breakthrough science,” said Rob Davis, chief executive officer and president, Merck. “Acceleron’s innovative research has yielded an exciting late-stage candidate that complements and strengthens our growing cardiovascular portfolio and pipeline and holds the potential to build upon Merck’s proud legacy in cardiovascular disease.”

In addition to sotatercept, Acceleron’s portfolio includes REBLOZYL® (luspatercept-aamt), a first-in-class erythroid maturation recombinant fusion protein approved in the United States, Europe, Canada and Australia for the treatment of anemia in certain rare blood disorders. REBLOZYL is being developed and commercialized through a global collaboration with Bristol Myers Squibb. . . .

Now you know -- and I am smiling this afternoon, because I know the arc of history bends inexorably toward. . . progress.

And so, I know maybe a month -- or a year -- from tonight, NASA will change the name of the fine science instrument featured on our masthead. I just. . . know it.



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