Allergan, Inc. and MAP Pharmaceuticals, Inc. have entered into a definitive merger agreement whereby Allergan will acquire 100 per cent of the shares of MAP Pharmaceuticals for a price of $25.00 per share. MAP Pharmaceuticals is a biopharmaceutical company focused on developing and commercializing new therapies in neurology, including Levadex, an orally inhaled drug for the potential acute treatment of migraine in adults.
Levadex is currently under review with the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA).
The transaction, which has been unanimously approved by the boards of directors of both companies, will be accomplished pursuant to a cash tender offer followed by a second step merger. The per share cash offer price represents a 60 per cent premium over MAP's closing stock price on the Nasdaq Stock Market of $15.58 on January 22, 2013, and represents a total equity value of approximately $958 million, on a fully-diluted basis. The acquisition is expected to close late in the first quarter or in the second quarter of 2013.
"One of the key drivers of Allergan's continued success is our focus on medical specialties where we have extensive knowledge of physician and patient needs, and can provide a broad portfolio of products," said David E I Pyott, chairman of the Board, president and chief executive officer, Allergan. "Allergan has a record of leadership in the Neurosciences field and, according to a recent physician survey, is now perceived as the #1 company in prophylactic migraine management by physicians. During the past few years, Allergan has received regulatory approvals in 56 countries for Botox for use in the treatment of chronic migraine. As a result, thousands of patients who suffer from chronic migraine have benefited from this important treatment option. We plan to capitalize on this depth of expertise in Neurology as we continue the global development of Levadex as a potential acute treatment for migraine that is complementary to Botox and use MAP's proprietary drug particle and inhalation technologies to generate new pipeline opportunities."
"Through our dedicated employees at MAP Pharmaceuticals, we have made tremendous progress to date with our lead product candidate, Levadex, enabling us to realise substantial value for our stockholders through this transaction," said Timothy S Nelson, president and chief executive officer, MAP Pharmaceuticals. "We are pleased that we and Allergan share similar values and a common vision in neuroscience that make for a strong cultural and scientific fit between our companies. We believe this acquisition by our partner Allergan will increase the potential for our product candidates to make a meaningful difference for patients we have worked so hard to serve."
In January 2011, Allergan entered into a collaboration agreement with MAP to co-promote Levadex, contingent upon potential regulatory authority approvals in the US and Canada, to neurologists and pain specialists in these markets. In May 2011, MAP initially submitted a New Drug Application (NDA) for Levadex to the FDA. In October 2012, MAP resubmitted its NDA, which included additional data and provided responses to FDA comments. In November 2012, MAP announced that its NDA resubmission for LEVADEX was accepted for filing by the FDA and that the FDA has classified the resubmission as a complete Class 2 response and has set a goal date of April 15th, 2013 under the Prescription Drug User Fee Act (PDUFA).
Assuming this transaction closes as planned, and approval of Levadex occurs on or before the PDUFA date of April 15, 2013, Allergan anticipates that this transaction will be dilutive to 2013 earnings per share by approximately $0.07 and accretive to earnings per share by the second half of 2014. Allergan will provide 2013 guidance on its February 5, 2013 earnings call. Allergan currently anticipates that, excluding this transaction, 2013 earnings per share growth expectations will fall within our mid-teens growth aspiration.
Allergan expects to fund the transaction with a combination of cash on hand, cash equivalents and short-term borrowings under its commercial paper programme. The transaction is not subject to any financing contingency.
Allergan is a multi-specialty health care company and committed to uncover the best of science and develop and deliver innovative and meaningful treatments to help people reach their life's potential.