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Pfizer made another impressive acquisition this week.
The company is buying AstraZeneca’s small-molecule antibiotics business in a deal that could be worth up to $1.5 billion, reported Reuters.
Two established assets in AstraZeneca’s antibiotic arsenal are Merrem and Zinforo. The former treats serious infections in hospitalized patients while the latter is administered as an intravenous antibiotic that targets pneumonia as well as soft tissue and skin infections. Both of these drugs generated $250 million in sales last year, according to AstraZeneca.
Other products in this portfolio include Zavicefta, and ATM-AVI and CXL, which are under clinical development wrote Reuters. Zavicefta has EU approval for treating a variety of ailments like complicated urinary tract infections and hospital acquired pneumonia/ventilator associated pneumonia.
According to Pfizer’s announcement, the terms of the deal are as follows: The pharmaceutical firm will make an upfront payment of an estimated $550 million once this transaction closes along with a deferred payment of $175 million in January 2019.
Furthermore, AstraZeneca could be the beneficiary of an approximate $850 million in milestones and sales-related payments based on sales goals in certain markets for Zavicefta and ATM-AVI.
Pfizer’s newest addition to its product offerings bolster its own portfolio of 60 anti-infective and anti-fungal drugs.
The drug-maker has been on the hunt for lucrative deals after it was unable to merge with Ireland-based firm Allergan earlier this year. Pfizer recently bought oncology firm Medivation for $14 billion so it could gain access to venture’s promising prostate cancer drug Xtandi.
Filed Under: Drug Discovery
