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Monday, May 12, 2014

Shire buys Lumena Pharma for at least $260 mln, (NYSE: AGN)

London-listed drugmaker Shire has bought San Diego-based biopharmaceutical firm Lumena Pharmaceuticals, a company with rare disease pipeline assets, for at least $260 million. Shire said on Monday that buying Lumena Pharma, whose programs include treatments for liver diseases, would add to its rare diseases portfolio and would help it grow its gastrointestinal business.It said it would make an upfront payment of $260 million in cash, plus a payment for net cash at closing, as well as near-term contingent milestone payments related to ongoing clinical trials.The company added that does not expect the acquisition to result in a change to its previously stated earnings guidance for 2014.The deal is the latest move of consolidation in the pharmaceutical sector, which has seen Shire itself reportedly attract the interest of Allergan Inc.

Allergan, Inc. is a multi-specialty health care Company focused on developing and commercializing pharmaceuticals, biologics, medical devices and over-the-counter products. Shares of AGN fell by 1.3% or $-2.13/share to $161.30. In the past year, the shares have traded as low as $81.33 and as high as $170.05. On average, 3978680 shares of AGN exchange hands on a given day and today's volume is recorded at 4570150.



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