Novo Nordisk Swallows Dicerna In $3.3B Buyout: All You Need To Know

Novo Nordisk A/S NVO has agreed to acquire Dicerna Pharmaceuticals Inc DRNA for $38.25 per share in cash, representing a total equity value of $3.3 billion and a premium of 80% to Dicerna's closing price on November 17, 2021.
"The acquisition of Dicerna accelerates Novo Nordisk's research within RNAi and expands the usage of the RNAi technology," said Marcus Schindler, the CSO of Novo Nordisk.
Novo Nordisk and Dicerna have been parties to a research collaboration since 2019 to discover and develop RNAi therapies using Dicerna's proprietary GalXC RNAi platform technology.
The collaboration between Novo Nordisk and Dicerna encompassed the exploration of more than 30 liver cell targets with the potential to deliver multiple clinical candidates for disorders including chronic liver disease, non-alcoholic steatohepatitis, type 2 diabetes, obesity, and rare diseases.
Novo Nordisk expects to initiate clinical development of the first investigational RNAi therapeutic to emerge from the collaboration in 2022.
Price Action: DRNA shares are up 78.3% at $37.95, and NVO stock is up 0.73% at $115.25 during the premarket session on the last check Thursday.