Big moves in biotech today as takeout attempts and trial results dominate the headlines. Let's jump right in a take a look at three biotechs posting big gains.
The top performer is easily Ardea Biosciences (Nasdaq: RDEA**) , up 52% on news of a buyout from AstraZeneca. The big British pharma makes sense as an acquirer, since AstraZeneca's pipeline is looking mighty barren after a couple of high-profile flops. The $1.26 billion offer is largely for gout drug Lesinurad, although Ardea also has stage 2 cancer assets currently licensed to Bayer. No one confuses Savient's (Nasdaq: SVNT**) gout drug Krystexxa for a blockbuster, but that doesn't mean Lesinurad is doomed to poor sales as well. Savient unsurprisingly traded down 6% for the day, as it appears the company is running out of time to gain traction for its Krystexxa.
The top performer is easily Ardea Biosciences (Nasdaq: RDEA**) , up 52% on news of a buyout from AstraZeneca. The big British pharma makes sense as an acquirer, since AstraZeneca's pipeline is looking mighty barren after a couple of high-profile flops. The $1.26 billion offer is largely for gout drug Lesinurad, although Ardea also has stage 2 cancer assets currently licensed to Bayer. No one confuses Savient's (Nasdaq: SVNT**) gout drug Krystexxa for a blockbuster, but that doesn't mean Lesinurad is doomed to poor sales as well. Savient unsurprisingly traded down 6% for the day, as it appears the company is running out of time to gain traction for its Krystexxa.