Abivax CEO Addresses Rumors of Eli Lilly Acquisition as Distraction

Abivax's Response to Acquisition Rumors

By Sabrina Valle

Market Reaction and Stock Performance

NEW YORK, Jan 20 (Reuters) - Abivax Chief Executive Marc de Garidel dismissed as "noise" reports in the French press that pharmaceutical giant Eli Lilly may take over his company, and said market speculation about an ongoing review by French authorities was inconsistent with how French foreign-investment oversight works.

CEO's Comments on Acquisition Discussions

Investors looking to profit on Abivax's fluctuating stock price have encouraged talk over the past weeks that Eli Lilly may have approached the company for an acquisition. 

Future Prospects for Abivax

Abivax shares soared more than 2,000% from July through December to a peak of 145 euros per share on December 26, before receding to 101 euros, after the French government denied the rumors.

Much of the stock's rise can be explained by excitement around successful late-stage results on July 22 for Abivax's inflammatory bowel disease drug Obefazimod. 

Still, the stock surged after French publication La Lettre said in December Eli Lilly had talks with the French government over acquiring Abivax. The French government and Abivax both dismissed those reports.

Abivax CEO De Garidel said he does not know the details of any meeting that may have taken place between Eli Lilly or any other company and the French finance ministry.

"There was no discussion on the acquisition of Abivax. ... if there was a conversation, this would be illegal," he said in an interview.

"The noise around this potential acquisition is a distraction, but our duty is not to be distracted."

De Garidel, who has a successful track record executing high-value biotech sales to large pharma firms and is known for an acute sense of timing for closing transactions, said claims that France's finance ministry had been approached were incompatible with the required sequence of events for the government involvement.

While it is possible that a company contemplating an acquisition of any French-based company could have met with the ministry to understand the process, the actual review process would not begin until after a deal would be announced, he said.

"The first step before engaging the government on this foreign direct investment regulation, there must be a step number one: a public transaction communicated between the acquirer and the acquiree. That has not happened," he said.

"Therefore, the idea that (we) would have discussed in France the acquisition of Abivax cannot be real, because it would have required, again, a formal announcement of both companies about the transaction."

The CEO declined to comment on any informal talks with pharmaceutical companies.

Abivax has said it has enough cash to fund its projects into the fourth quarter 2027, but it would need to raise additional capital to break even. The company met with dozens of potential investors during the J.P. Morgan Healthcare conference last week in San Francisco.

"We are always looking to further enhance our shareholder base with high-quality investors.  With regard to 'buyers', we don’t comment on market rumors or speculation," the company said.

M&A PAST

Equity analysts, including Morgan Stanley, Piper Sandler and Truist Financial, have recently raised their price targets on Abivax to between $140 and $145, citing obefazimod's commercial potential to become a reference treatment for ulcerative colitis and the company's attractiveness as an acquisition target.

J.P. Morgan estimated that obefazimod targets a rapidly expanding U.S. inflammatory bowel disease market worth more than $25 billion by 2030. The bank said in a Jan. 9 note that Abivax would be a solid acquisition for a company like Eli Lilly.

Market research presented by Abivax and in scientific conferences points to broad clinical activity, strong tolerability and emerging evidence of anti-fibrotic benefit for obefazimod. Analysts have said this would boost the drug's strategic value to larger pharmaceutical makers.

Since 2020, De Garidel has led the Corvidia Therapeutics sale to Novo Nordisk for $2.1 billion and CinCor Pharma to AstraZeneca for up to $1.8 billion, both leveraging science results when industry dealmaking was slow.

Abivax is expected to report in late June top-line Phase 3 maintenance data for obefazimod in ulcerative colitis. If successful, this would significantly reduce the risk in investing in the company and make it a safer target for acquisition.

Eli Lilly has said the company would not comment on business development activity.

(Reporting by Sabrina Valle in New York; Editing by David Gregorio)