Stocks To Watch: Novartis AG [NYSE: NVS] is making headlines today. This follows news that the company had agreed to buy Medicines Co. in a $6.8 billion deal. The acquisition of this cholesterol drug maker is another promising addition to Novartis, in a series of acquisitions under CEO Vas Narasimhan. The deal will give Novartis access to the experimental cholesterol drugs, Inclisiran. Through it, the company will also have access to a wide array of other drugs including Entresto, a treatment for heart failure.
Under the deal, shareholders of Medicines Co. will get $85, representing a 45% premium on the level it closed at on the 18th of November, when news of talks between the two companies broke out. While the deal is valued at $6.8 billion, on a diluted basis, it is worth about $9.7 billion.
Under its current CEO, Novartis has taken an acquisition strategy to better its presence in the treatment of cancer and rare diseases. In a call with investors last week, the company’s CEO stated that this deal has the potential to become a major sales driver for Novartis, and will boost the company’s profit margins in its innovative drugs division.
Besides this deal, Novartis is also releasing to the market Zolgensma. This is a gene therapy for treating muscle disease. The company gained access to this treatment after it bought AveXis Inc last year for $8.7 billion.
Looking at the charts, the company had little movement on Friday’s close. It closed the day with a slight loss of 0.06%. Volumes in the day stood at 906.98k. In today’s session, news of the company’s acquisition could play into the price action.
About Novartis AG
Novartis AG is a researcher, manufacturer, and marketer of healthcare products all across the world. The company also has agreements with a number of organizations that include Bristol-Myers Squibb and the University of California, Berkeley. It has its headquarters in Basel, Switzerland.
