Abivax climbs on Lilly takeover speculation
Shares in Abivax were tracking up this morning as a media report in France suggested a takeover by Eli Lilly – worth €15 billion ($17.5 billion) – could be on the cards.
French newspaper La Lettre said the Paris-based biotech – which is listed on the Nasdaq – has been on Lilly's radar after Abivax reported positive phase 3 results for obefazimod (ABX464) in ulcerative colitis (UC). Shares in the company were up around a third (32%) at the time of writing.
2026 has started strongly in pharma M&A terms, with Amgen already completing an $840 million buy of Dark Blue Therapeutics, Eli Lilly agreeing a $1.2 billion takeover of Ventyx Bio, and MSD rumoured to be in talks to buy Revolution Medicines in a deal that could be worth up to $32 billion. The JPM Healthcare conference, now underway in San Francisco, often coincides with the announcement of M&A news early in the year, although Abivax is not scheduled to make a presentation.
Obefazimod – potentially a first-in-class oral miR-124 enhancer – is currently being tested in three phase 3 trials in patients with moderately to severely active UC and a phase 2b trial in Crohn's disease, covering the two major forms of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD).
Last year, Abivax reported positive results from two phase 3 studies in its ABTECT programme that looked at induction treatment for UC with a 50 mg once-daily dose of obefazimod, showing a placebo-adjusted remission rate of 19.3% after eight weeks.
An interim analysis of safety data from the maintenance stage of the trials revealed no concerns, and Abivax is expecting data from that in the second quarter, which could set up regulatory filings before the end of the year. Initial data in Crohn's should also be ready in late 2026, said Abivax.
In an update to investors published last week, Abivax said obefazimod is "well positioned to become a future market leader in the IBD space" thanks to a mechanism of action that targets the site of inflammation and could also address fibrosis, which is a feature of Crohn's disease.
Follow-on drugs in the miR-124 enhancer class are also being evaluated by the biotech, along with combinations of obefazimod with other UC drugs like anti-IL-23 drugs, PDE4 inhibitors, and α4β7 integrin inhibitors.
According to La Lettre, Lilly is seeking guidance from the French Finance Ministry on whether the proposed acquisition would be subject to France's foreign investment control framework.
Abivax's chief executive, Marc de Garidel, would not comment on the Lilly rumour, but said the company would need a partner to bring obefazimod to international markets.
Photo by Vardan Papikyan on Unsplash
