Lantheus Holdings announced plans to acquire radiopharmaceuticals CDMO and diagnostics company Evergreen Theragnostics in an all-cash deal valued at $250 million, with up to $752.5 million in potential milestone payments.
The acquisition is expected to bolster Lantheus’ capabilities as a fully integrated radiopharmaceutical company, incorporating Evergreen’s scalable radioligand therapy (RLT) manufacturing infrastructure, which includes a revenue-generating CDMO business.
“This transaction, along with the agreement to acquire Life Molecular Imaging, enhances our operations across the radiopharmaceutical value chain,” Lantheus CEO Brian Markison said in a statement. “With Evergreen’s manufacturing and development capabilities, we become fully integrated and will ultimately make a difference in the lives of more patients."
The acquisition includes OCTEVY, a registrational-stage PET diagnostic agent for neuroendocrine tumors, which complements Lantheus’ therapeutic agent, PNT2003. Evergreen’s expertise in RLT manufacturing and proprietary pipeline development, as well well as its ability to work with a variety of diagnostic and therapeutic isotopes, aligns with Lantheus’ oncology-focused growth strategy. The company also gains a clinical and pre-clinical portfolio of theranostic pairs, further expanding its radiopharmaceutical pipeline.
“CDMOs with capabilities in handling radiopharmaceuticals are seeing strong demand, reflecting strength in these therapeutic modalities,” according to CPHI’s 2024 annual report. “Barriers to entry here are extremely high and could lead to a supply/demand imbalance in the near term as more radiopharmaceuticals make their way into the clinical pipelines.”
Evergreen CEO James Cook highlighted the potential benefits of combining resources to accelerate patient access to innovative diagnostics and therapies, while noting Lantheus’ financial strength. Lantheus reaffirmed its full-year 2024 financial guidance, projecting revenue between $1.51 billion and $1.52 billion.
The deal, approved by both companies’ boards, is anticipated to close in the second half of 2025, pending regulatory approvals.