Allergan snagged co-promotion rights to MAP's Levadex--courtesy of MAP Pharmaceuticals |
Two years after Allergan ($AGN) snagged co-promotion rights to MAP Pharmaceuticals' ($MAPP) inhalable migraine therapy Levadex with a $157 million licensing deal, it's come back to the bargaining table and crafted a pact to buy the biotech for close to a billion dollars.
Allergan agreed to pay $25 a share for MAP, a whopping 60% premium, as regulators ponder the developer's second try at an approval. The FDA issued a CRL on Levadex last March, with a detailed list of demands for more information on MAP's chemistry, manufacturing and controls process as well as more time to inspect a third-party manufacturer's facility and review the company's inhaler. The FDA now has until April 15 to issue a decision on marketing the therapy, and it's clear that Allergan believes regulators are preparing to hit the green light.
MAP's migraine drug is a revised version of dihydroergotamine, an IV drug that was been reformulated into a new therapy that can be administered alone with an inhaler.
The deal makes sense for Allergan. Botox is approved for use as a migraine therapy, giving the company ample marketing experience in the field. And it's been using its Botox bucks to buy new products. Last November it struck a deal to buy SkinMedica for $350 million.
"Allergan has a record of leadership in the Neurosciences field and, according to a recent physician survey, is now perceived as the #1 company in prophylactic migraine management by physicians," said Allergan CEO David E.I. Pyott. "During the past few years,
Migraine offers a significant market, which has been attracting a number of developers. NuPathe ($PATH) won an approval for its migraine patch last week.
- here's the press release
- hetre's the story from The New York Times (sub. req.)