British drug major AstraZeneca Plc. (AZN.L,AZN) announced Tuesday that it has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire Icosavax, Inc. (ICVX), a US-based clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company, for a transaction value of around $1.1 billion. Under the deal terms, AstraZeneca, through a subsidiary, will initiate a tender offer to acquire Icosavax shares for $15.00 per share in cash at closing. The […]

Swiss drug major Roche Holding AG (RHHBY) announced Monday that it has signed a definitive merger agreement to acquire Carmot Therapeutics, Inc., a privately owned US clinical-stage biotechnology company, for $2.7 billion upfront in cash at the closing of the transaction. The deal also includes additional payments of up to $400 million depending on the achievement of certain milestones. The […]

UK’s Competition and Markets Authority or CMA said on Friday that it has cleared the acquisition of Activision Blizzard, Inc. (ATVI) by tech giant Microsoft Corp. (MSFT) without cloud gaming rights. The decision was taken after the UK competition regulatory authority concluded that the deal would now preserve competitive prices and better services. As per the concession made by Microsoft […]

The J. M. Smucker Co. (SJM), a maker of food and beverage products, said on Monday that it has signed a deal to acquire Hostess Brands, Inc. (TWNK), a bakery company, for $34.25 per share in a cash and share transaction, representing a total value of around $5.6 billion, including a debt of $900 million. Following the news, SJM was […]

British arms, security, and aerospace firm BAE Systems Plc (BA.L) announced Thursday its agreement to acquire Ball Aerospace business from Ball Corp. (BALL) for around $5.55 billion in cash, subject to customary closing adjustments. The proposed acquisition is expected to be earnings accretive in the first full year including run-rate cost synergies, and cashflow accretive in the first year excluding […]

DISH Network Corp. (DISH) and EchoStar Corp. (SATS) announced Tuesday they have entered into a definitive agreement for DISH to combine with EchoStar in an all-stock merger at a fixed exchange ratio. The transaction was negotiated and recommended by Special Committees of Independent Directors of both companies and unanimously approved by the Boards of Directors of both companies. The deal […]

French Insurance company Axa S.A. (AXAHY.PK) reported Thursday that its first-half net income edged down to 3.833 billion euros from last year’s 3.852 billion euros. Underlying earnings grew 19 percent to 4.11 billion euros from last year’s 3.47 billion euros. Underlying earnings under IFRS4 grew 5%. Underlying earnings per share increased 8 percent to 1.79 euros from 1.65 euros in […]

Neurogene Inc. and Neoleukin Therapeutics, Inc. (NLTX) have entered into a definitive merger agreement in an all-stock deal. Upon closing, Neoleukin Therapeutics will be renamed Neurogene Inc. The combined company will be led by Rachel McMinn, Founder and CEO of Neurogene, and other members of the Neurogene management team. Pre-merger Neoleukin stockholders are expected to own approximately 16% of the […]

Kingspan Group Plc (KGP.L, KGSPY), an Irish building materials company, announced Tuesday an agreement with Schramek GmbH to acquire around 51 percent stake in Steico SE for an initial consideration of around 251.4 million euros. The company will also have an option to acquire a further around 10 percent of shares in Steico in the future. Steico is a German […]