Jan 6 (Reuters) – Eli Lilly is in advanced talks to buy Ventyx Biosciences for more than $1 billion, the Wall Street Journal reported on Tuesday, citing people familiar with the matter.
Shares of Ventyx surged more than 50% in extended trading following the report, which said the deal could be announced imminently.
A potential buyout of Ventyx will add drugs for inflammatory bowel diseases such as Crohn’s disease and ulcerative colitis to Lilly’s pipeline, along with treatments for conditions like Parkinson’s.
One of Ventyx’s experimental drugs is currently in mid-stage development for the treatment of a cardiovascular disease associated with obesity.
Eli Lilly told Reuters it does not “comment on business development activity”, while Ventyx did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
(Reporting by Puyaan Singh in Bengaluru; Editing by Tasim Zahid and Shilpi Majumdar)
