AbbVie is buying Allergan at a much cheaper price than Pfizer offered in 2015. Photo: AbbVie
AbbVie is acquiring Allergan for $63 billion in cash and stock, in a deal valued at about $80 billion after factoring in Allergan's debt. The company is banking that Allergan's Botox, along with other beauty and eye drugs, will ease the transition as AbbVie's Humira loses U.S. patent protection in 2023.
Why it matters: A combined AbbVie and Allergan — both of which have engaged in controversial patent tactics to protect the moats around their blockbuster drugs — would be one of the largest companies in the rapidly consolidating pharmaceutical industry.