Johnson & Johnson agreed to pay $1.75 billion in cash to purchase privately held Alios BioPharma Inc, which is developing a drug for a respiratory viral infection for which there is no approved treatment.J&J, whose shares were marginally higher at $106.71 in morning trading, said Alios would also give it access to a portfolio of drugs targeting other viral infections.J&J has been increasing its focus on treatments for infectious diseases, having signed two other deals earlier this year - one for the maintenance treatment of people with HIV and the second to treat influenza.Alios's experimental drug, AL-8176, to treat infants with respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) is currently in mid-stage trails. In July, the company reported positive results from a similar study in adults.
Johnson & Johnson is a holding company. The Company is engaged in the research and development, manufacture and sale of a broad range of products in the health care field. Shares of JNJ traded higher by 0.4% or $0.43/share to $106.97. In the past year, the shares have traded as low as $85.50 and as high as $108.77. On average, 6244570 shares of JNJ exchange hands on a given day and today's volume is recorded at 1046817.
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