AbbVie said it will acquire neuroscience drugmaker Cerevel Therapeutics for roughly $8.7 billion, CNBC reports.
Under the terms of the deal, AbbVie will pay $45 per share for Cerevel.
The deal is AbbVie’s latest attempt to expand its drug pipeline as its top-selling treatments, such as Humira, face generic competition. Just last week, AbbVie agreed to buy cancer drug developer Immunogen for nearly $10 billion.
Cerevel will specifically beef up AbbVie’s portfolio for psychiatric and neurological disorders “where significant unmet needs remain,” according to a release from AbbVie.
Cerevel will bring over drugs such as Emraclidine, an experimental treatment for both schizophrenia and Alzheimer’s disease psychosis, including symptoms like hallucinations and delusion. That drug is currently in a phase one study in elderly volunteers.
AbbVie said it expects to complete the acquisition in the middle of 2024.
