Why Beam Therapeutics Stock Is Getting Bought Today

Beam Therapeutics Inc BEAM shares are trading higher Tuesday after Eli Lilly And Co LLY agreed to acquire certain rights under Beam's agreement with Verve Therapeutics Inc VERV.

What Happened: Eli Lilly said it will acquire rights under Beam's amended collaboration and license agreement with Verve, including rights to co-develop and co-commercialize Verve's base editing programs for cardiovascular disease.

Beam is set to receive a $200 million upfront payment, plus a $50 million equity investment. The company is also eligible for another $350 million in development-stage payments based on certain milestones. 

"This deal provides meaningful upfront capital to advance our portfolio of clinical- and research-stage programs, with significant additional value achievable as the Verve programs advance through development," said John Evans, CEO of Beam.

"We are excited to see the broad therapeutic potential of base editing fully realized through our pipeline and through the programs enabled by our past and future collaborations."

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BEAM Price Action: Beam shares were up 11.2% at $21.25 at the time of publication, according to Benzinga Pro.

Photo: 3844328 from Pixabay.