By Adria Calatayud

Germany's Merck KGaA said it is in advanced talks for a potential acquisition of SpringWorks Therapeutics, a U.S. biopharmaceutical company that specializes in rare diseases and cancer.

The German life-sciences and chemicals company said late Monday that no legally binding agreement has been entered into and that there is no certainty that any transaction will materialize. Critical conditions have yet to be met, Merck added.

SpringWorks in late 2023 launched its first drug, Ogsiveo, a therapy for a rare type of tumors that occur in connective tissue known as desmoid tumors in adults. It is awaiting a decision from U.S. drug regulators on its application for mirdametinib, a drug candidate for the treatment of rare genetic disorder neurofibromatosis type 1, or NF1.

Shares in SpringWorks jumped Monday after Reuters reported that the company was in talks with Merck, closing 34% higher. This gave the Stamford, Conn.-based company a market value of $4.02 billion, according to FactSet.

Shares in Merck fell 3.7% Monday, valuing the company at 58.67 billion euros ($60.47 billion).

Darmstadt, Germany-based Merck has operations spanning three segments--pharmaceuticals, life-science equipment and chemicals, and materials for the semiconductor and electronics industries.

The company had signaled at an investor update in October that it was on the lookout for deals, saying acquisitions were an integral part of its strategy. Merck said at the time that it was focusing on its life-science business for larger future transactions and that it would seek to intensify the in-licensing of drug candidates in its healthcare segment, which houses its pharma operations.

Write to Adria Calatayud at adria.calatayud@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

February 11, 2025 01:48 ET (06:48 GMT)

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