Shares of companies focused on developing drugs for a liver condition called metabolic dysfunction-associated steatohepatitis (MASH) traded higher on Thursday after Roche (OTCQX:RHHBY) (OTCQX:RHHBF) agreed to acquire leading MASH developer 89bio (NASDAQ:ETNB) in a deal worth up to $3.5B.
While 89bio (NASDAQ:ETNB) climbed ~86%, Madrigal Pharma (MDGL), which already has an FDA-approved MASH therapy on the market, added ~3%.
Novo Nordisk (NVO), whose obesity therapy Wegovy was granted FDA label expansion for MASH last month, spiked after a real-world study indicated that its diabetes drug Ozempic outperformed Eli Lilly’s (LLY) Trulicity in cutting major cardiovascular events among Medicare patients.
Other notable gainers include Altimmune (ALT), Sagimet Biosciences (NASDAQ:SGMT), Akero Therapeutics (AKRO), Arrowhead Pharmaceuticals (ARWR), Terns Pharmaceuticals (TERN), and Enanta Pharmaceuticals (ENTA).
Meanwhile, SPDR S&P Biotech ETF (XBI), which represents biotech stocks, gained ~2%, extending its three-month rise to ~16% compared to the ~10% jump in the S&P 500 (SP500) as the sector witnessed the latest M&A deal.
The all-cash transaction expected to close in Q4 2025 is the second major biotech deal for September, following Novartis’ (NVS) recent agreement to acquire heart drug developer Tourmaline Bio (TRML) for $1.4B early this month.