Recordati is acquiring the rights to a rare immune disease drug from Sanofi for $825 million

(Reuters) – Italian pharmaceutical company Recordati said on Friday it would buy from Sanofi the global rights to a drug to treat cold agglutinin disease (CAD), a rare autoimmune disorder, for $825 million.

The deal includes additional commercial milestone payments of up to $250 million and will close before the end of the year, subject to regulatory approval, the Italian company said.

CAD is a rare B-cell lymphoproliferative disease characterized by the premature destruction of red blood cells.

Recordati said it has signed an agreement for the rights to Enjaymo, a biologic that is the only targeted product for the treatment of CAD approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA).

The company said it will fund the acquisition with existing cash and new committed bank credit facilities and expects net debt to be approximately 2.4 to 2.5 times its pro forma core earnings (EBITDA) in 2024 and 2025 will be 2.0 times the pro forma EBITDA.

Its dividend and capital allocation policies remain unchanged, Recordati added.

(Reporting by Alessandro Parodi in Gdansk; Editing by Alvise Armellini and Mark Potter)