By Adam Whittaker

Roche agreed to buy San Diego-based Poseida Therapeutics in a deal worth up to $1.5 billion, as the company seeks to expand its pipeline and support growth.

The deal allows the Swiss pharmaceutical company to bring in house its current partner with the aim of developing cell therapies in oncology, immunology and neurology. The move is part of Roche's efforts to replenish its drug pipeline and drive sales growth toward the end of the decade.

Roche said Tuesday that it entered into a definitive merger agreement to acquire Poseida Therapeutics for about $1 billion, or $9 a share, with additional performance-related payments worth up to $4.00 a share that could take the full deal value to around $1.5 billion. Poseida shares closed at $2.86 on Monday.

The two companies have been working together since 2022 to develop CAR-T cell therapies for patients with hematological malignancies.

CAR-T cell therapies are customized for individual patients and are made by collecting a patient's own T cells, a type of white blood cell, and re-engineering them in the laboratory to fight cancers.

The deal also includes Poseida Therapeutics' other cell-therapy candidates as well as related manufacturing capabilities and platform technologies.

Roche said it aims to create the next generation of off-the-shelf CAR-T cell therapies with potential for a broader commercial use. The company hopes the next generation of therapies can be delivered at scale with increased potency and improved safety, it said.

The transaction is expected to complete in the first quarter of 2025, Roche said.

The acquisition fits with Roche's pharma strategy outlined earlier this year, Vontobel analyst Stefan Schneider wrote in a research note. With first revenue from Poseida expected in 2027, according to FactSet, the deal should support Roche's growth toward the end of the decade, the analyst said.

The company in September said it expected its pharma portfolio on the market to deliver sales growth until 2027, with its in-house pipeline and outside business opportunities expected to add to its growth potential.

Write to Adam Whittaker at adam.whittaker@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

November 26, 2024 03:40 ET (08:40 GMT)

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