Bristol-Myers Squibb buying Celgene in $74B deal

SUMMIT, N.J. (AP) — Bristol-Myers Squibb is spending $74 billion on fellow drugmaker Celgene in a deal aimed at stocking the combined company's development pipeline with cancer, immunology and cardiovascular treatments.

Bristol would gain the cancer treatment Revlimid in the cash-and-stock deal announced Thursday, as well as inflammatory disease treatments and several products close to launching.

The combined company will have nine products with more than $1 billion in annual sales. Bristol Chairman and CEO Giovanni Caforio said in a prepared statement that the combination will create a deep product portfolio that drives growth.

It was a hard sell, however, in premarket trading today. Shares of Bristol plunged more than 15 percent. Celgene soared 31 percent.

Under terms of the deal, shareholders of Celgene Corp., based in Summit, N.J., will receive one share of Bristol-Myers Squibb plus $50 in cash for each share they own. They'll also receive one tradable contingent value right for each Celgene share, allowing the holder to receive a payment when future regulatory milestones are hit.