Mallinckrodt to Acquire Therakos for $1.325B

 Mallinckrodt plc , a leading specialty biopharmaceutical company, and The Gores Group , a global investment firm, have announced that they have entered into a definitive agreement under which a subsidiary of Mallinckrodt will acquire Therakos, Inc. a leading immunotherapy company in a transaction valued at approximately$1.325 billion . Subject to customary closing conditions, the parties expect the transaction to be completed in the latter part of the third calendar quarter of 2015, Mallinckrodt's fourth fiscal quarter.

Therakos, Inc. is the global leader in autologous immune cell therapy delivered through extracorporeal photopheresis (ECP), and is focused on providing innovative treatment platforms that harness the power of patients' immune systems to fight disease. Therakos® Photopheresis is approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for the palliative treatment of the skin manifestations of cutaneous T-cell lymphoma (CTCL) in persons who have not been responsive to other forms of treatment. Outside the U.S., Therakos Photopheresis is also broadly approved for ECP, and used by physicians in countries around the world in immune-modulating applications in a variety of conditions including CTCL, Graft Versus Host Disease, Crohn's disease, solid organ transplants and other diseases.

Therakos therapeutic platforms, including the latest generation Therakos CELLEX® Photopheresis System, are the world's only approved, fully integrated systems for administering autologous immune cell therapy through ECP. Used by academic medical centers, hospitals and treatment centers in more than 25 countries, Therakos systems have been used to deliver over one million photopheresis treatments globally.

"This transaction demonstrates our ongoing commitment to building a strong, highly profitable Hospital growth business as we build and diversify Mallinckrodt's Specialty Brands portfolio," said Mark Trudeau, President and Chief Executive Officer of Mallinckrodt . "In expanding our Hospital portfolio we continue to move decisively in line with our strategic roadmap. And we believe we will be able to unlock untapped value in Therakos – making ECP treatment accessible to more patients in more hospitals by applying some of the innovative contract, service and customer intimacy principles that have been so successful with our INOMAX® (nitric oxide) for inhalation. One of Mallinckrodt's core strengths is our unique ability to manage complexity, delivering additional value to diverse products and environments. With this expansion into immunotherapy we add to our footprint of nuclear medicine, pain management, and respiratory neonatal critical care, broadening our touch points in hospitals and further expanding our portfolio with innovative therapies."

Trudeau continued, "Therakos is, quite simply, another excellent fit for Mallinckrodt . It is an immunotherapy treatment for patients who may have exhausted other therapies, with significant potential value in a variety of complex disease states and conditions. Installed in more than 350 academic medical centers and hospitals around the world, it is delivered in hospital-based out-patient clinics via an innovative, fully integrated, drug-device combination that is widely reimbursed globally. And it is supported by a high-touch, high-service commercial model that is very similar to and has a high degree of potential hospital account overlap with INOMAX."