Pfizer Seeks To Invest In More Early Stage Researc
Post# of 94141
Source: Dow Jones News
By Ezequiel Minaya
Pfizer Inc. said Friday that it was broadening its investment strategy linked to research and development to include partnerships with "early-stage" companies.
The drug maker said the first four companies to benefit from its eased restrictions would receive $46 million in financing. The investment targets were seen as conducting research in promising areas aligned with Pfizer's core interests, the company said in a news release.
The new partners included Bioatla, Nextcure Inc., Cortexyme Inc. and 4D Molecular Therapeutics Inc. Pfizer said the companies were at the early stages of research in conditionally active biologics, immuno-oncology, neurodegenerative technologies and gene therapy.
"The key for Pfizer is to be flexible in how we partner with different companies; we use a range of investment vehicles and collaboration models in R&D," said Mikael Dolsten, president of Pfizer worldwide research and development.
In November, Pfizer and Dublin-based Allergan PLC said they would merge in a so-called inversion deal that was initially valued at about $155 billion and would create the world's biggest drug maker by sales.
Such deals enable a U.S. company to move abroad and take advantage of a lower corporate tax rate elsewhere, and they have remained popular in the face of U.S. efforts to curb them.
Write to Ezequiel Minaya at Ezequiel.Minaya@wsj.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
January 08, 2016 17:05 ET (22:05 GMT)
Copyright (c) 2016 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.