Under the terms of the transaction, AbbVie will acquire all outstanding shares of Cerevel for $45.00 per share in cash, valuing the target company at approximately $8.7 billion. The boards of directors of both companies have approved the transaction which is expected to close in the middle of 2024.

"Our existing neuroscience portfolio and our combined pipeline with Cerevel represents a significant growth opportunity well into the next decade," said AbbVie’s chairman and CEO, Richard A. Gonzalez.

"Cerevel has always been committed to transforming what is possible in neuroscience. With AbbVie's long-standing expertise in developing and commercializing medicines on a global scale, Cerevel's novel therapies will be well positioned to reach more people living with neuroscience diseases," said Ron Renaud, president and CEO of Cerevel Therapeutics.

Cerevel's late-stage asset emraclidine, a positive allosteric modulator (PAM) of the muscarinic M4 receptor, is a potential best-in-class, next-generation antipsychotic that may be effective in treating schizophrenia patients. In a Phase 1b study, emraclidine has shown promising efficacy and safety in schizophrenia and is currently completing two Phase 2 trials. In addition, emraclidine has potential in dementia-related psychosis in Alzheimer's disease and PD. Emraclidine is currently in a Phase 1 study in elderly healthy volunteers in support of a potential Alzheimer's disease psychosis program.

Cerevel has also multiple assets advancing in clinical development that are complementary to AbbVie's priority areas within neuroscience, including Tavapadon, a first-in-class dopamine D1/D5 selective partial agonist for the management of PD, which is currently in Phase 3 studies.

AbbVie only announced the acquisition of ImmonoGen on Nov. 30.