Galapagos Shares Rise After $5.1 Billion Partnership Announced

By Dave Sebastian

Shares of Galapagos NV (GLPG, GLPG.AE) rose more than 15% premarket Monday after the biotechnology company entered a $5.1 billion deal with Gilead Sciences Inc. (GILD) on Sunday.

Gilead will gain rights outside Europe to the Belgian company's treatments in development--namely a Phase 3 candidate for idiopathic pulmonary fibriosis and option rights for a Phase 2b candidate for osteoarthritis--in a broad collaboration aimed at increasing growth at the drugmakers.

Gilead will also invest $1.1 billion, or 140.59 euros ($158.56) a share, to increase its stake in the drugmaker to 22% from 12.3%. That represents a 20% premium to the 30-day weighted average share price of Galapagos, which trades in Amsterdam and on Nasdaq and has a market value of around $7.9 billion.

Gilead could eventually boost its ownership stake to as much as 29.9%, assuming Galapagos shareholders sign off, The Wall Street Journal reported. Gilead will get two seats on Galapagos's board of directors as part of the deal, which was reported earlier by the Journal.

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(END) Dow Jones Newswires

July 15, 2019 07:43 ET (11:43 GMT)

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