Pfizer to Buy Medivation for $14 Billion

The pharma giant is purchasing the San Francisco–based cancer drugmaker to boost its oncology portfolio.

Written byBob Grant

| 1 min read

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WIKIMEDIA, REVISORWEBPharmaceutical firm Pfizer announced today (August 22) that it would be acquiring California-based cancer drugmaker Medivation for $14 billion in cash (around $81.50 per share). “The proposed acquisition of Medivation is expected to immediately accelerate revenue growth and drive overall earnings growth potential for Pfizer,” Ian Read, chairman and CEO of Pfizer said in a statement. “The addition of Medivation will strengthen Pfizer’s Innovative Health business and accelerate its pathway to a leadership position in oncology, one of our key focus areas.”

Medivation agreed in July to court acquisition offers from several interested companies, which reportedly included Sanofi, Merck, and Celgene. The drugmaker is best known for its US Food and Drug Administration–approved prostate cancer drug (Xtandi) and its breast cancer drug (Talazoparib), which is currently in late-stage development.

The deal, which is expected to be finalized by the third or fourth quarter of this year, could be a boost for Pfizer following its failed $152-billion merger with Allergan—a deal scuttled by US regulators earlier this year.

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Meet the Author

Bob Grant
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From 2017 to 2022, Bob Grant was Editor in Chief of The Scientist, where he started in 2007 as a Staff Writer. Before joining the team, he worked as a reporter at Audubon and earned a master’s degree in science journalism from New York University. In his previous life, he pursued a career in science, getting a bachelor’s degree in wildlife biology from Montana State University and a master’s degree in marine biology from the College of Charleston in South Carolina. Bob edited Reading Frames and other sections of the magazine.
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