Shares of Sun Pharmaceuticals Industries Ltd were trading in the green and 2% higher on 10 March after the company announced its plans to acquire Checkpoint Therapeutics, Inc., a Nasdaq-listed immunotherapy and targeted oncology company.

Sun Pharma will pay $4.1 per share in cash upfront for a total consideration of $355 million. Furthermore, stockholders will get a contingent value of up to $0.7 per share upon reaching a milestone.

The extra pay is contingent upon Cosibelimab being cleared prior to certain deadlines in the European Union or in Germany, France, Italy, Spain, or the UK, in compliance with centralized approval procedures.

The transaction is expected to be completed in the second quarter of calendar year 2025, at which point Sun Pharma will buy all of Checkpoint’s remaining stock.

The first cash payment of $4.1 per share of ordinary stock is approximately 66% more than the most recent closing price of Checkpoint.

Checkpoint is committed to developing cutting-edge treatments for patients with solid tumour cancers. The business said in a stock exchange filing that UNLOXCYT (cosibelimab-ipdl) has been approved by the US Food and Drug Administration (USFDA) to treat people with metastatic cutaneous squamous cell carcinoma or locally advanced cSCC who are not candidates for surgery or curative radiation therapy.

Dilip Shanghvi, the chairman and managing director of Sun Pharma, said, “Combining UNLOXYCT, an FDA approved anti-PD-L1 treatment for advanced cutaneous squamous cell carcinoma, with Sun Pharma’s global presence means patients with cSCC may soon have access to an important, new treatment option.”

James Oliviero, president and CEO of Checkpoint, claims that Sun Pharma shares his company’s commitment to improving the lives of people with skin cancer. Additionally, he believes the purchase will provide UNLOXYCT with faster access to international markets such as the US and Europe, as well as maximize value for its investors.

Checkpoint and Sun Pharma have also inked a royalty agreement, as has Fortress Biotech, the former’s largest stakeholder. After the transaction closes, Fortress will be able to receive royalties based on future sales of cosibelimab over a specific time period, replacing the royalty rights granted to it at the time Checkpoint was established.

At 11:12 am, the shares of Sun Pharma were trading 0.14% higher at Rs 1,611.70 on NSE. 

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