Tourmaline Bio, Inc. (NASDAQ:TRML) shares surged Tuesday after Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS) announced a $1.4 billion acquisition of the U.S.-based biotech, strengthening the Swiss drugmaker’s pipeline of cardiovascular and kidney treatments.
Novartis will pay $48.00 per share in cash at closing, a 59% premium to Tourmaline’s September 8 closing price and 127% above its 60-day volume-weighted average. The deal is expected to close in the fourth quarter of 2025.
The acquisition centers on Tourmaline’s lead asset pacibekitug, an investigational anti-IL-6 IgG2 human monoclonal antibody designed to mitigate systemic inflammation implicated in Atherosclerotic Cardiovascular Disease (ASCVD).
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In May, Tourmaline Bio released topline results from its ongoing Phase 2 TRANQUILITY trial evaluating quarterly and monthly subcutaneous dosing of pacibekitug in patients with elevated high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (hs-CRP), a biomarker associated with elevated cardiovascular risk, and chronic kidney disease.
The data showed rapid, deep, and durable reductions in hs-CRP through Day 90 achieved across all pacibekitug arms with high statistical significance compared to placebo.
“With no widely adopted anti-inflammatory therapies currently available for cardiovascular risk reduction, pacibekitug represents a potential breakthrough in addressing residual inflammatory risk in ASCVD with a differentiated mechanism of action targeting IL-6,” said Shreeram Aradhye, President, Development and Chief Medical Officer, Novartis.
“Inflammation is a major driver of cardiovascular disease, and the team at Tourmaline has made significant progress with this asset. We are excited to bring pacibekitug into the Novartis portfolio and collaborate with the Tourmaline team to advance its development as we diversify our efforts in cardiovascular care,” Aradhye added.
Other Deals In 2025 To Bolster Heart and Kidney Drug Portfolio
Earlier in 2025, Novartis agreed to acquire Anthos Therapeutics Inc. for an upfront payment of $925 million and potential additional payments of up to $2.15 billion upon achieving specified regulatory and sales milestones.
Anthos is developing abelacimab, a late-stage medicine to prevent stroke and systemic embolism in patients with atrial fibrillation, a type of irregular heartbeat, or arrhythmia, that occurs when the upper chambers of the heart beat irregularly.
In April, Novartis acquired Regulus Therapeutics for an initial payment of $7.00 per share in cash or $0.8 billion. If the milestone is achieved, total consideration, including the CVR, would be approximately $1.7 billion.
Regulus is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company developing microRNA therapeutics for severe renal disease and autosomal dominant polycystic kidney disease (ADPKD).
Price Action: TRML stock is trading higher by 58.44% to 47.82 premarket at last check Tuesday. NVS stock is down 0.55%.
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