Shire Bids for Movetis

Shire plc’s Luxembourg, Inc. subsidiary has bid to acquire all shares of Movetis NV for approximately $561.4 million in cash. Movetis, a Belgium-based European specialty gastrointestinal (GI) company focuses on discovering, developing and commercializing new treatments for GI conditions with a high unmet medical need.

The acquisition would expand Shire’s GI portfolio and its presence in Europe with the recently launched Resolor, a new chemical entity indicated for the treatment of chronic constipation in women. The drug is approved in the EU as well as Iceland, Lichtenstein and Norway. Movetis has the rights to Resolor in those markets and Switzerland and is entitled to royalties on sales outside of Europe from Johnson & Johnson.

Mike Cola, president of Shire’s Specialty Pharmaceuticals business, commented, “This proposed acquisition of Movetis provides a highly complementary fit for our GI business unit and supports our strategy of expanding our specialty product portfolio into international markets. This is aligned with our strategy of developing and commercializing medicines to address symptomatic diseases treated by specialist physicians, in this case gastroenterologists. The acquisition of Movetis will provide immediate revenue from a newly-launched product that has strong patent protection, as well as a promising GI pipeline.”