TLDR
- AbbVie is nearing a $10.9 billion all-cash deal to acquire Apogee Therapeutics (APGE)
- The offer is a roughly 60% premium to Apogee’s June 18 closing price of $90.38
- JPMorgan reiterated a Buy on ABBV, calling it “a solid fit” strategically
- Apogee’s lead drug, zumilokibart, could rival Dupixent in atopic dermatitis treatment
- ABBV stock fell over 2% on Friday; APGE gained around 2%
AbbVie is in advanced talks to acquire clinical-stage biotech Apogee Therapeutics in an all-cash deal worth approximately $10.9 billion. The offer values Apogee at roughly a 60% premium to its closing price of $90.38 on June 18. ABBV stock dropped over 2% Friday, while APGE rose around 2% on the news.
An announcement could come as early as Monday, June 22, according to Reuters, though neither company has publicly confirmed the talks.
This would be AbbVie’s largest acquisition since its $63 billion purchase of Allergan in 2019. Unlike Allergan, which came with approved products and real revenue, Apogee has no commercial products on the market.
Apogee is a clinical-stage biotech developing antibody treatments for inflammatory diseases including atopic dermatitis, asthma, and COPD. Its entire pipeline rests on one lead candidate: zumilokibart.
Zumilokibart targets IL-13, a cytokine that drives skin inflammation in atopic dermatitis. Trial data show it may only require twice-yearly dosing, compared to up to 26 injections per year with some existing treatments.
JPMorgan Sees Strategic Logic
JPMorgan analyst Chris Schott reiterated his Buy rating on ABBV after the report surfaced. He called the deal a strong strategic fit, pointing to AbbVie’s deep immunology experience as a key factor in commercializing zumilokibart if approved.
Schott also noted that zumilokibart could compete directly with Dupixent, the blockbuster drug co-marketed by Sanofi and Regeneron that currently dominates the atopic dermatitis market.
He believes AbbVie would launch a broad development program for the drug, and that the acquisition strengthens the company’s late-stage pipeline — something investors have been watching closely.
ABBV carries a Strong Buy consensus on TipRanks, with 16 Buys and 5 Holds over the past three months. The consensus price target sits at $254.71, implying roughly 17.65% upside.
AbbVie’s Pipeline Pressure
AbbVie’s top three immunology drugs — Skyrizi, Rinvoq, and Humira — generated $30.4 billion combined in 2025, up 14% year over year. But Humira continues to lose ground to biosimilar competition.
Skyrizi and Rinvoq are picking up the slack for now, but that runway won’t last indefinitely. AbbVie has been buying early-stage assets rather than waiting for them to mature.
Last year, it paid up to $2.1 billion for Capstan Therapeutics, a Phase 1 autoimmune cell therapy developer. Apogee would be a bigger and earlier bet than any of those.
Apogee had already secured up to $1.3 billion in financing from Blackstone Life Sciences in May to fund a Phase 3 trial for zumilokibart. AbbVie would essentially be buying into that trial before any regulatory outcome is known.
Apogee’s market cap stood at roughly $6.8 billion before the deal reports surfaced, up nearly 20% year to date. AbbVie is paying nearly $11 billion — a price that reflects future potential, not current products.
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