Nastassia Samal
Biopharmaceutical company Albireo Pharma (NASDAQ: WHITE) as a reaction to its agreement to be acquired by the French company Ipsen.
Ipsen said on Monday it would buy ALBO through a $42/share public offering for estimated consideration of ~$952 million plus a contingent value right of $10 per share related to the US approval of ALBO’s lead drug candidate, Bylvay.
ALBO’s shares increased to almost double their value after the announcement of the acquisition. there were last up to 0.7% at $44.14 in Wednesday afternoon trading.
ALBO, based in Boston, Ma., is developing Bylvay for several indications, including progressive liver disease, bile buildup in the liver, and bile duct obstruction.
“Given Bylvay’s fairly modest sales thus far ($24 million forecast for FY22), the business potential of additional indications, and competition yet to materialize, we view potential counteroffers as unlikely,” the analyst said. of Jefferies Eun Yang in a research note Tuesday, while downgrading ALBO to hold from buy and cutting the price target to the $42 buy price.
HC Wainwright analyst Ed Arce also downgraded ALBO’s rating to neutral with a $42 price target, stating that key risks to the rating and price target include failure to complete ALBO’s public offering. .
In addition, Cowen analyst Ritu Baral downgraded ALBO to market performance from outperform, while Guggenheim’s Seamus Fernandez downgraded ALBO to neutral from buy.
Wall Street analysts and SA Authors rate ALBO a Buy, while Seeking Alpha’s Quant rating system gives it a Strong Buy.
