Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire Crinetics Pharmaceuticals, Inc. in a cash transaction that will pay Crinetics shareholders $85.00 per share. The price places the transaction's total equity value at approximately $10.0 billion and the expected net value at about $8.8 billion after accounting for estimated cash to be acquired.
Following the announcement, shares of Crinetics more than doubled, rising by over 100%. Shares of Vertex moved modestly lower, trading down about 0.5%.
The boards of directors of both companies gave unanimous approval to the acquisition. Completion of the deal is targeted for the third quarter of 2026 and remains subject to customary closing conditions. Those conditions include required regulatory approvals and the affirmative vote of Crinetics shareholders.
Crinetics is the developer of PALSONIFY (paltusotine), which received approval from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration in September 2025 and has since secured approval from the European Medicines Agency. PALSONIFY is described as the first and only once-daily oral therapy approved for adults with acromegaly, a disorder driven by a pituitary tumor that produces excessive growth hormone. The company estimates the diagnosed population affected by the disease in the United States at roughly 20,000 people.
The acquisition also brings Crinetics' development-stage assets into Vertex's portfolio, including atumelnant, a once-daily oral ACTH receptor antagonist currently in Phase 3 testing for congenital adrenal hyperplasia, or CAH. The company cites an addressable U.S. patient population of about 17,000 for classic CAH. In Phase 2 trials, patients treated with atumelnant reportedly achieved near normalization of excess androgen levels while on physiologic replacement doses of glucocorticoids. Crinetics has reported that atumelnant was generally well tolerated in those studies, with no treatment-related severe or serious adverse events observed to date.
Vertex's chief executive and president framed the transaction as a strategic fit, highlighting Crinetics' focus on serious, specialty-market diseases, clear causal human biology, and medicines with the potential to offer substantial patient benefit. Crinetics' founder and chief executive described the planned partnership as grounded in a shared commitment to scientific development and to delivering treatments for patient communities that have been underserved.
Vertex stated that the combined portfolio could generate more than $5 billion in aggregate annual peak revenue. The company also said the transaction is expected to be accretive to non-GAAP operating income in 2029.
To fund the acquisition, Vertex intends to use a mix of cash on hand and debt. The planned financing package is supported by $4.5 billion of fully committed bridge financing provided by Bank of America, N.A. and Morgan Stanley Senior Funding, Inc.
Deal timeline and approvals
- Board approvals: Unanimous for both Vertex and Crinetics.
- Expected close: Third quarter of 2026, pending regulatory and shareholder approvals.
- Financing: Combination of cash and debt, with $4.5 billion of committed bridge financing.
Transaction economics
- Per-share price: $85.00 in cash.
- Total equity value: Approximately $10.0 billion.
- Net of estimated cash acquired: Approximately $8.8 billion.
- Potential peak combined revenue: More than $5 billion annually.