Aimmune Therapeutics, Inc. AIMT announced that it has entered into a definitive agreement to be acquired by Sociétés des Produits Nestlé, S.A (SPN), a subsidiary of Swiss food giant, Nestlé S.A for $34.50 per share or an equity value of $2.6 billion. The acquisition price reflects a 174% premium to Aimmune’s closing share price on Aug 28, 2020.

SPN is part of Nestlé Health Science (NHSc).

Per the agreement, SPN will offer to buy all the outstanding shares of Aimmune’s common stock, which are not already owned by NHSc for $34.50 per share in cash.

Notably, NHSc has already been a shareholder and board member in Aimmune since 2016. The latest development is looking to combine Nestlé’s nutritional science leadership with Aimmune’s food allergy treatment, thereby creating a world leader in food allergy treatment and prevention.

Shares of Aimmune skyrocketed 171.6% following the announcement of the above news on Monday. In fact, the stock has inched up 2.2% so far this year compared with the industry’s rise of 1.2%.

Aimmune’s only marketed product is Palforzia, an oral immunotherapy, approved in January 2020 for the treatment of patients with peanut allergy. Palforzia is the only FDA-approved therapy treating peanut allergy. With the merger, NHSc will acquire the full commercial rights to Palforzia

The above-mentioned merger agreement has been unanimously approved by all the independent board members of Aimmune. The deal is expected to close in the fourth quarter of 2020, subject to certain closing conditions.

Palforzia is designed to reduce the incidence and severity of allergic reactions including anaphylaxis, which may occur due to accidental exposure to peanut.

However, the prescribing information for Palforzia comes with a boxed warning. Sale of the drug has been slow since its launch amid ongoing coronavirus pandemic.

Meanwhile, the marketing authorization application (MAA) for Palforzia is currently under review in Europe to treat peanut allergy in children and adolescents aged from four years to 17 years. A decision from the European Medicines Agency (EMA) is expected in the fourth quarter.

Zacks Rank & Stocks to Consider

Aimmune currently carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). Better-ranked stocks in the biotech sector include Emergent BioSolutions Inc. EBS, Horizon Therapeutics Public Limited Company HZNP and QIAGEN N.V. QGEN, all sporting a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy) at present. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.

Emergent’s earnings estimates have moved 83.2% and 87.9% north for 2020 and 2021, respectively, over the past 60 days. The stock has skyrocketed 111.4% year to date.

Horizon’s earnings estimates have been revised 60.6% and 56.5% upward for 2020 and 2021 each over the past 60 days. The stock has rallied 107.5% year to date.

QIAGEN’s earnings estimates have moved 23.8% and 35.2% north for 2020 and 2021, respectively, over the past 60 days. The stock has soared 50.8% year to date.

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