Firm will also buy new shares worth almost $33 million to support launch of HAE drug in Europe.
Shire is offering to buy Jerini for €328 million, or about $515.39 million in cash. The acquisition will add Jereni’s hereditary angioedema (HAE) drug thus bolstering Shire’s portofolio of human genetic therapies (HGT).
Shire says that it will pay €6.25 per share, or $9.82, for all issued Jerini shares. The price represents a 71.23% premium of Jerini’s closing value yesterday.
Additionally, Shire is investing €21 million, or approximately $32.96, for subscription to newly-issued shares that correspond to 9% of Jerini’s increased share capital. This will support Jerini’s European launch of its HAE compound, Firazyr, which may begin before the acquisition is completed.
The treatment, which is in Phase III trials, has orphan drug status in Europe and the U.S. It is being developed for the symptomatic treatment of acute attacks of HAE. The product is expected to launch in Europe in the second half.
In the U.S., however, the compound has been stalled, as Jerini received a not-approvable letter in April. Shire will assist Jerini in getting a green light from the FDA. The firm is confident that it can address the issues raised by the agency, which were connected to efficacy data and not drug safety. A complete response will be submitted to the FDA within the next three to four months.
In addition, Shire will seek to support Jerini in its launch of this product in other markets. The company estimates that Firazyr could reach global peak sales of around $350–400 million during the next decade with over half of these sales coming from the EU.
Shire will also provide support from its established HGT commercial team in Europe to raise awareness of HAE, build Centers of Excellence, and facilitate patient identification and treatment.
On completion of the acquisition, Shire will review Jerini’s other assets including Jerini Ophthalmic, a U.S. subsidiary developing a treatment for wet age-related macular degeneration, and JPT Peptide Technologies, a peptide manufacturing operation producing complex synthetic peptides.
The purchase will take place through Maia Elfte Vermogensverwaltungs, Shire’s indirect subsidiary, which will be renamed Shire Deutschland Investments. It is expected to be accretive to non-GAAP earnings by the second half of 2010.
