Pharmaceutical Executive Daily: Bayer Shares Drop After Inclusive Capital Offloads Remaining Stake

Welcome to Pharmaceutical Executive Daily, your quick briefing on the top news shaping the pharmaceutical and life sciences industry.

In today's Pharmaceutical Executive Daily, Bayer shares briefly dip after activist investor Inclusive Capital offloads its remaining stake at a loss, Quotient Therapeutics enters a multi-year research collaboration with Merck to discover novel drug targets in inflammatory bowel disease, and Gilead Sciences agrees to acquire privately held Ouro Medicines in a deal valued at up to $2.18 billion.

Inclusive Capital Partners has sold its remaining 8.5 million Bayer shares at roughly 25% below what the firm paid when it first disclosed its position in early 2023. The sale, arranged by JPMorgan Chase, raised about $380 million but is widely considered to represent a loss on the investment. Bayer shares fell as much as 3.7% on the news, with market observers noting that the exit removes a key source of activist pressure on the company as it continues to grapple with litigation costs and a significant debt load.

Quotient Therapeutics has announced a multi-year research collaboration with Merck to identify novel drug targets for inflammatory bowel disease using its somatic genomics platform. Under the terms of the agreement, Merck will pay Quotient $20 million upfront, with the deal carrying potential development, regulatory, and commercial milestones that could bring its total value to $2.2 billion. The partnership makes Merck the third major pharmaceutical company to access Quotient's platform, following earlier collaborations with Pfizer and GSK focused on cardiovascular, renal, respiratory, and liver disease.

Finally, Gilead Sciences has agreed to acquire Ouro Medicines, a privately held biotech developing antibody-based therapies for severe autoimmune conditions, for $1.68 billion upfront and up to $500 million in contingent milestone payments. The deal centers on a BCMA-targeting T-cell engager in early-stage trials for autoimmune hemolytic anemia and immune thrombocytopenia that has received FDA Fast Track designation.

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