Dive Brief:
- Pfizer will buy Anacor Pharmaceuticals in a $5.2 billion all-cash deal, adding a topical treatment of eczema to its inflammation and immunology pipeline, the companies said on Monday.
- Anacor's main candidate, an eczema drug called crisaborole, is currently under FDA review with a decision expected on or before January 7, 2017.
- Assuming FDA approval, Pfizer hopes crisaborole will boost revenues from its innovative products business, complementing its other anti-inflammatory drugs Xeljanz and Enbrel (outside U.S. and Canada).
Dive Insight:
The deal comes in the wake of Pfizer's failed $160 billion merger with Allergan, which foundered on new tax rules issued by the U.S. Treasury. Pfizer is now contemplating whether to break up its "innovative" and "established" product units into separate businesses for tax purposes.
Acquiring Anacor could give Pfizer a potential blockbuster treatment. In a statement Monday, the company said it expected peak annual revenues to hit $2 billion.
“Anacor will be a strong fit with Pfizer’s innovative business, further supporting our strategic focus on Inflammation and Immunology, and is expected to enhance near-term revenue growth for the innovative business," said Albert Bourla, head of Pfizer's Global Innovative Pharma business.
"Our dedicated Inflammation and Immunology group has strong existing in-market franchises with Enbrel and Xeljanz, as well as a robust mid-stage pipeline, and this acquisition has the potential to add a near-term U.S. product launch."
Eczema, or atopic dermatitis, affects between 18 million and 25 million people in the U.S. There have been no newly approved drugs for the inflammatory skin disorder in over a decade.
Pfizer will pay $99.25 per Anacor share. Excluding debt, the equity value of the deal is worth about $4.5 billion, according to Reuters.
The companies expect the transaction to close sometime in the third quarter.