Drugmaker Amgen Inc is buying Five Prime Therapeutics for about $1.9 billion to expand its line of gastric cancer drug candidates and its presence in Asia-Pacific, the companies said on Thursday.
Amgen has been looking to grow in the oncology market in the region since gaining a toehold in China in 2019 through a 20.5% stake in cancer drugmaker BeiGene Ltd for nearly $3 billion. It expects the region to contribute about a quarter of its growth over the next 9-10 years.
Amgen said it will pay $38 per Five Prime share, representing a premium of nearly 79% to the company’s last closing price of $21.26.
Read more at: Reuters
