Company Analysis - Celldex & Avant
A good strategic fit
With their focus in such similar areas, the two companies have highly complementary pipelines across a wide range of indications; the merger will create a strong portfolio of drug candidates in a variety of fields, including oncology, infectious disease and autoimmune disorders. Another area of synergy between the two companies comes with their respective technology platforms. The combination of proprietary vaccine discovery techniques, such as Celldex' APC technology, with Avant's cholera- and salmonella-derived delivery systems, can only serve to enhance these respective properties. Several existing thirdparty funding agreements and validation for Global Health Vaccine programmes also make the merger seem a particularly favourable one for both companies.
Charles Schaller, chairman of Celldex, clearly agrees, stating that the merger creates a company with ".expertise in developing novel immunotherapy products and backed by a widely applicable technology platform based on human monoclonal antibodies".
As is becoming increasingly common within the
industry, neither company is new to the acquisition
market. In 2000, Avant successfully acquired Megan
Health, a privately-held vaccine company, in a deal
worth US$18 million. This acquisition allowed Avant to
bolster its vaccine portfolio, particularly with respect to
oral vaccines serving the travellers' market.
Furthermore, a deal in 2002 saw Avant go on to acquire
Universal Preservation Technologies (UPT), a San
Diego-based company specializing in stabilization and
preservation techniques. 
With this acquisition, Avant
gained UPT's VitriLife preservation technology, allowing
it to substantially reduce the development costs of its
vaccine pipeline and further enhance its formidable
vaccine manufacturing capabilities.
Just a few years after this, in 2005, Celldex completed the acquisition of UK-based biotechnology company Lorantis, providing Celldex with access to Lorantis' preclinical programme targeting the Notch signalling pathway, now an integral part of Celldex' drug development process. Just five months later, Celldex went on to acquire all assets of Philadelphia-based Alteris Therapeutics. Perhaps the most important factor in this acquisition was Celldex' gaining of rights to Alteris' drug candidate ALT-110. This compound, now under the moniker CDX-110, has become Celldex' lead drug and is currently in North American Phase II/III trials for the treatment of glioblastoma multiforme. With US fast-track and orphan drug status already granted, the future development of CDX-110 promises to play an important part in the financial future of the combined company.
