Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd. (NYSE: TEVA; TASE: TEVA) has acquired NuPathe Inc. (Nasdaq: PATH) for $144 million in cash. Teva will pay $3.65 per share for NuPathe, plus up to an additional $3.15 per share in milestone payments if specified net sales thresholds for NuPathe’s Zecuity treatment for acute migraine are achieved. These payments could reach $124 million.
Teva outbid Endo Health Solutions Inc. (Nasdaq: ENDP) for NuPathe by $0.80 per share. Teva will make an offer to purchase the public's shares in NuPathe and delist the company. The deal will be closed in February.
Zecuity is the first and only prescription migraine patch approved by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for the acute treatment of migraine with or without aura in adults. It is a disposable, single-use, iontophoretic transdermal patch that actively delivers sumatriptan, the most widely prescribed migraine medication, through the skin.
Teva said that with the addition of Zecuity, it is expanding its portfolio of medicines for treating disorders of the central nervous system. Teva will also have access to NuPathe’s proprietary technology including its transdermal delivery system for patients.
“We believe that Zecuity is a great fit within our existing US CNS Business Unit, with near-term sales and significant commercial potential" said Teva VP and Teva CNS general manager Mike Derkacz. “Zecuity enables rapid transdermal delivery of sumatriptan and bypasses the gastrointestinal tract to avoid issues with oral intake, addressing an important, unmet patient need, especially for those with migraine-related nausea. At Teva, we will leverage our unique Shared Solutions infrastructure to support patient utilization of this important new medicine for migraine sufferers."
Published by Globes [online], Israel business news - www.globes-online.com - on January 21, 2014
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