Will Another Sirtuin Suitor Emerge?

It has now been confirmed by the market, that the intellectual property of the sirtuin platform Sirtris has put together over the last several years has a definitive minimum value of $720,000,000. However, based upon the total lack of buying in advance of the $22.50 buyout offer it is unlikely that Chris Westphal actively shopped the company around to other big pharmaceutical companies. This was an extremely well kept secret. In fact, on the trading day preceding the announcement of the offer, SIRT shares actually declined by over 4%. These observations lead me to believe (and hope) that another large drug company bid is NOT out of the question. If you follow the industry, the drug pipelines at many companies in big pharma have been seen as weak by analysts. It is the pipeline that drives value at these companies.

A review of all the diseases of the aging that are potential targets of the sirtuin platform will make it clear why Glaxo made its bid and why another drug company might feel compelled to take a close look at the bid and carefully evaluate whether a higher bid is in order. A higher bid is still a long shot but it is not out of the question.