On Thursday, UCB (Union Chimique Belge), a multinational biopharmaceutical company headquartered in Brussels, Belgium, agreed to buy Ra Pharmaceuticals headquartered in Massachusetts, United States, for $2.1 billion.
The deal will enable UCB to offer new medications or treatments for a variety of rare diseases associated with the immune system and the central nervous system.
In a joint statement, CEO of UCB Jean-Christophe Tellier said, “Ra Pharma is an excellent strategic fit addressing multiple areas of UCB’s patient value growth strategy.”
Tellier explained that that the deal would help generate at least six product launches in the next five years, “strengthening the company’s neurology and immunology franchises with late and early-stage pipeline projects.”
It is expected that the acquisition of Ra Pharmaceutical, which was established in 2008, contributes to the Belgium drug manufacturer’s core earnings per share, increasing its revenue and net profit after five years.
The statement said, “It would not impact UCB’s financial guidance for 2019 but due to related R&D investments, UCB moved the mid-term target of reaching a recurring core profit (rEBITDA) ratio to revenue of 31% to 2022 from 2021.”
“Shareholders of the Cambridge, Massachusetts-based company will receive $48.00 in cash for each share they hold in Ra Pharma, what represents about 93% premium based on average closing stock price of Ra Pharma prior to signing,” the statement added.
The pharma companies said, “The purchase is to be funded by a combination of existing cash resources and new bank term loans, arranged and underwritten by BNP Paribas Fortis and Bank of America Merrill Lynch.” The transaction is expected to complete at the end of the first quarter of 2020.
