Monday, January 5, 2009

Indevus selling to Endo for up to $637M

By Mass High Tech staff

Lexington-based drug maker Indevus Pharmaceuticals Inc. reports it will be acquired by Endo Pharmaceuticals Holdings Inc. in a deal worth a potential $637 million.

According to Indevus officials, the company has entered into a definitive agreement with Pennsylvania-based Endo, which will acquire 100 percent of the outstanding shares of Indevus for about $370 million in cash. Endo will also pay up to an additional $267 million in cash upon achievement of certain milestones related to Indevus’ Nebido treatment for hypogonadism and the octreotide implant to treat acromegaly and carcinoid syndrome.

The up-front cash payment of $370 million equates to $4.50 per share and represents a premium of 45.2 percent over today’s closing price of the common stock of Indevus (Nasdaq: IDEV), according to officials. The deal has been approved by the boards of directors of both companies.

UBS Securities LLC advised Indevus on the deal, and Burns & Levinson LLP acted as legal counsel.

In June 2008, Indevus reported that its chief executive, Glen Cooper, had nixed his plans to retire before the third quarter due to expected delays in the U.S. approval of the firm’s testosterone drug Nebido.

Cooper had announced in March that he planned to retire by Sept. 1, 2008, after the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s approval of Nebido. In mid-June the company revealed that it expected the FDA to request additional safety data on Nebido, delaying the potential approval of the drug by two years.

In October, the company reported it had begun Phase 3 clinical trials of the company’s octreotide implant, used to treat acromegaly, a chronic disorder marked by excessive growth hormone production. The trials will determine the implant’s safety, tolerability and efficacy in suppressing the growth hormone.

Indevus lost $65.5 million for fiscal 2008, on revenue of $77.8 million.