US Stock Market Move | SpringWorks Therapeutics (SWTX.US) surged 34% as it discusses acquisition with Merck.

Merck KGaA announced that negotiations to acquire the American oncology and rare disease pharmaceutical company SpringWorks Therapeutics (SWTX.US) are ongoing, causing the stock price of this American company to surge 34% on Monday, with a market value exceeding $4 billion. Sources say that the two parties may sign an agreement in the coming weeks. The Germany-based Merck confirmed the report. SpringWorks' drug Ogsiveo has been approved for the treatment of adult soft tissue tumors in the United States. Merck has stated multiple times that it has accumulated billions of dollars in transaction firepower during the pandemic and is exploring acquisitions, as it produced a large number of products for COVID-19 vaccines, therapies, and tests at that time. The last time this German conglomerate signed a multi-billion dollar deal was in 2019 when it acquired Versum Materials Inc. to support its electronics division. A Merck spokesman stated in an email that the two parties have not reached a legally binding agreement yet, as "key conditions have not been met." He added that it is still uncertain whether any transaction will be completed. The pharmaceutical division of Merck is facing some challenges, with several experimental drugs receiving significant attention failures in the past and the patent expiration of its top-selling multiple sclerosis drug Mavenclad approaching. Bloomberg analyst Michael Shah stated in a report that acquiring SpringWorks would complement Merck's oncology business and could potentially increase annual sales by 1.5 billion ($1.55 billion) by 2030.