Solexa acquired by Illumina for $600m in shares; to keep Cambridge ops
Illumina Inc will acquire Solexa Inc (SLXA) in an all share merger worth about $600m, the two Nasdaq-listed companies said in a joint statement overnight.
Illumina has also agreed to invest $50m in Solexa in exchange for newly issued Solexa shares.
Headquartered in Hayward, California, with substantial operations in Cambridge, Solexa has developed a next generation genetic analysis system for use in whole genome sequencing, targeted resequencing, digital gene expression and microRNA analysis.
Illumina, headquartered in San Diego, said it expects to maintain Solexa's operations in both California and Cambridge. Illumina develops and markets next-generation tools for the large-scale analysis of genetic variation and function.
Together, the companies said, they will create the only company with genome-scale technology for genotyping, gene expression and sequencing, the three cornerstones of modern genetic analysis.
The market opportunity in sequencing is estimated at $1 billion, creating a market opportunity for the combined company in excess of $2.25 billion.
Solexa CEO John West, who will join Illumina as Senior VP and General Manager of the Sequencing Business, said: "This transaction is expected to provide significant benefits to Solexa stockholders, customers and employees. I am very excited about the opportunity that Solexa's combination with Illumina presents.
“Illumina brings proven business systems, world-class sales and support infrastructure and significant experience in managing products poised for substantial growth. I expect these attributes will help rapidly deploy Solexa's next generation sequencing platform,” he said.
“Together we expect to reach and exceed the milestone of the $100,000 genome."
Solexa 3Q
Also overnight, Solexa reported third-quarter results in which sales were down 33% to $0.57m from $0.84m. The company posted an 8% narrower net loss of roughly $9.9m, compared to $10.8m.
Solexa’s share price rose roughly 30% to $12.57, compared to the offer price of $14 each.
Solexa was originally a spin out from the University of Cambridge and was based on inventions made by a group led by David Klenerman and Shankar Balasubramanian in the Department of Chemistry.
14th November 2006
