Biotech Firms Enzon, NPS Discuss Merger
Thursday February 20, 12:26 am ET
NEW YORK -- Biotechnology concerns Enzon Pharmaceuticals Inc. (NasdaqNM:ENZN - News) and NPS Pharmaceuticals Inc. (NasdaqNM:NPSP - News) are in discussions to merge, a deal that would continue a recent wave of consolidation in the battered sector, people familiar with the situation told The Wall Street Journal.
The two companies were in intensive negotiations last night and a deal could be announced as soon as today, these people said. Terms couldn't be determined last night, although both sets of shareholders are expected to swap their stock for shares of a new company with a new name. They are expected to bill the deal as a "merger of equals" with nearly equal divisions of board seats and shareholder ownership, these people said.
Enzon, Bridgewater, N.J., has a market capitalization of about $600 million and NPS, based in Salt Lake City, has a market capitalization of about $800 million. The two companies have been in discussions for about a year.
Last week, Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) agreed to buy biotech concern Scios Inc. (NasdaqNM:SCIO - News) for $2.4 billion. Last month, Cambridge Antibody Technology PLC announced plans to buy Oxford GlycoSciences PLC for about $178 million in a deal that is now expected to attract other bidders.
While some biotechnology companies have been swallowed up by pharmaceutical titans, a combined Enzon-NPS would retain its biotechnology roots, while feeding each other's needs for better infrastructure and new products. Shares of Enzon were down 13 cents at $14.03 in 4 p.m. trading on the Nasdaq Stock Market (News - Websites). NPS was up 27 cents at $24.34, also on Nasdaq.
Wall Street Journal Staff Reporters Robin Sidel And Scott Hensley contributed to this report. |
