By Senad Karaahmetovic
Shares of Seagen (NASDAQ:SGEN) are down over 7% after Bloomberg News reported that talks with Merck (NYSE:MRK) are stalling.
The two companies have not been able to agree on a takeover price, although talks could still resume and ultimately result in a full agreement.
Merck has been looking to acquire Seagen to boost its oncology presence given the exposure to Keytruda, the best-selling cancer treatment. Merck already invested in Seagen two years ago in a $4.5 billion partnership agreement to develop an experimental breast cancer treatment.
Talks between the two sides come after Co-founder and CEO Clay Siegall resigned earlier this year as he is against the sale of the company.
A Needham & Company analyst commented:
“We expect the stock to trade lower on the news today, as the likelihood of a deal materializing, for which some expectation has been baked into the stock over the past 2+ months, now appears to be incrementally lower.”
The WSJ reported in June that Merck is aiming to acquire Seagen for roughly $40 billion. The news sent SGEN shares up about 13%.