Royal Pharma Proposes $11 Per Share to Elan for Tysabri Royalty Rights

By Edward B. Doong

Feb 25, 2013 01:59 PM EST

U.S. investment company Royalty Pharma made a big approach worth of $6.6 billion to Ireland's drug manufacturer Elan to get royalty rights for Tysabri, a drug used to treat multiple sclerosis.

The drug maker has recently announced its plan to sell 50% interest in the multiple sclerosis treatment with future royalty payments to American partner Biogen Idec before reinventing itself with a series of acquisitions.

Proposing $11 per Elan share, Royal Pharma said that Elan is to take cash and the royalty payments for Tysabri after the deal with Biogen Idec. It also made a statement that shareholders at Elan would be able to invest cash paid for their stock in other pharmaceutical firms without making a premium payment to take control.

Elan, whose shareholders include the U.S. group Johnson & Johnson with 18 percent share, said that the bid proposed by Royalty Pharma was highly opportunistic because it does not allow shareholders to review the full benefit of sales for Tysabri.

Moreover, Royalty Pharma reported that no further talks with Elan were completed and that it was stunned by the drug maker announcement of planning to return $1 billion to shareholders purchasing back shares.

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