$7.2 Billion Pharma Deal Rocks M&A Landscape

Jazz Pharma Acquires GW Pharma for $7.2 Billion

As Bloomberg noted, GW’s stock skyrocketed about 46% Wednesday morning as the headlines hit the wires.

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When Epidiolex was approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration in June 2018 for the treatment of seizures associated with two rare forms of epilepsy, it became the first plant-derived cannabinoid prescription medicine. The news was a mixed bag for CBD companies, however, as the Drug Enforcement Administration insisted that FDA-approved drugs that contain CBD must contain less than 0.1% THC, a tough burden to meet.

Epidiolex netted manufacturer GW Pharmaceuticals approximately $510 million in 2020, according to the company’s preliminary net product sales report. GW Chief Executive Officer Justin Gover said, “Epidiolex sales increased by over 70% in 2020 despite the challenges of COVID-19, reflecting the positive impact this medicine has on patients.”

So when Jazz Pharmaceuticals inked a deal to acquire GW earlier this week, the $7.2 billion price tag may have been a premium that rocked the 2021 international cannabis M&A landscape, but, as Jason Wilson, cannabis and banking expert at ETF Managers Group, told Digital Editor Eric Sandy, the blockbuster deal “demonstrates that pharmaceutical companies are recognizing the value and future potential of cannabinoid-based medicines.”

- Tony Lange, Associate Editor