Finance
French biotech Abivax's shares climb on Eli Lilly bid rumors
Published by Global Banking and Finance Review
Posted on December 10, 2025
Last updated: January 7, 2026
Global Banking and Finance Review
Company
Published by Global Banking and Finance Review
Posted on December 10, 2025
Last updated: January 7, 2026
Dec 10 (Reuters) - French biotech company Abivax's shares jumped by 20% on Wednesday on market rumours that U.S. pharma giant Eli Lilly might be interested in bidding for the business.
The "share price movement is driven by speculation around a possible takeover," said Damien Choplain, analyst at Stifel.
Abivax and Eli Lilly did not respond to initial requests for comment.
The French company announced in July positive results from a Phase 3 trial of its key drug obefazimod for the treatment of ulcerative colitis, sending its Paris-listed shares soaring over 500% in a day, and filed for an offering of up to $400 millions in American Depositary Shares.
By 1007 GMT on Wednesday, the stock was on track for an 18-fold increase in value since the beginning of the year, having reached a market valuation of over 8 billion euros ($9.3 billion), up from just 500 million euros in January.
($1 = 0.8595 euros)
(Reporting by Alessandro Parodi, Gianluca Lo Nostro and Danilo Masoni, editing by Matt Scuffham)
Market valuation refers to the total worth of a company as determined by the stock market, based on its share price and the total number of outstanding shares.
A takeover occurs when one company acquires control of another company, typically by purchasing a majority of its shares.
American Depositary Shares (ADS) are shares of a foreign company traded on U.S. exchanges, representing a specific number of the company's shares.
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