Bristol Myers acquires cell therapy partner 2seventy bio for about $286 million

March 11 (Reuters) - Bristol Myers Squibb BMY.N will acquire 2seventy bio TSVT.O for about $286 million in cash, sending the cancer cell therapy maker's shares up 76% in premarket trading on Tuesday.

Late on Monday, 2seventy said Bristol Myers will acquire all outstanding shares of the company for $5.00 per share, which is at a premium of 88% to the stock's last close on Friday.

The companies have partnered on Abecma, a CAR T-cell therapy for the treatment of a type of blood cancer called multiple myeloma.

CAR T-cell therapies work by collecting white blood cells from a patient, genetically modifying them to fight a cancer and then infusing them back into the patient.

The acquisition could save Bristol future profit-sharing costs in Abecma, according to Leerink analyst David Risinger.

For 2seventy, the deal brings to a close a process that started with its spinoff from gene-therapy maker bluebird bio BLUE.O in 2021 . Then, 2seventy sought to focus on CAR T-cell treatments, with Abecma as its only approved product.

But the partners struggled to scale up sales of the therapy, facing competition from Johnson & Johnson JNJ.N and Legend Biotech's LEGN.O Carvykti.

Last year, 2seventy sold all its experimental cell therapies to Regeneron Pharmaceuticals REGN.O to focus only on Abecma.

Sales of Abecma came in at $242 million in the United States last year, down 32.4% from 2023.

The deal is expected to close in the second quarter.