Illumina to acquire Pacific Biosciences for $1.2 billion

SAN DIEGO & MENLO PARK, Calif.—Illumina, Inc. and Pacific Biosciences announced on November 1st that they have signed an agreement for Illumina to acquire Pacific Biosciences at a price of $8.00 per Pacific Biosciences share, in an all-cash transaction. This price represents a premium of 71% to Pacific Biosciences’ 30 trading day volume weighted average share price as of the market close on October 31st, 2018, and a total enterprise value of approximately $1.2 billion on a fully diluted basis.

The agreement has been approved by the board of directors of Illumina and Pacific Biosciences. The transaction is subject to approval by the shareholders of Pacific Biosciences, as well as other customary closing conditions, including applicable regulatory approvals. Illumina expects to close the transaction in mid-2019.

The acquisition complements Illumina sequencing solutions with accurate long-read sequencing capabilities to answer a set of complex genomic questions. While Illumina’s accurate and economic short-read sequencing platforms address the majority of sequencing applications optimally, select applications, such as de novo sequencing and sequencing of highly homologous regions of genomes, are better addressed with accurate long-reads. With its acquisition of Pacific Biosciences, Illumina will be positioned to provide integrated workflows and novel innovations that bring together the best of both technologies to help researchers advance their discoveries more quickly, and to allow clinicians to offer new tests economically.

“PacBio’s unmatched accuracy mirrors that of Illumina’s in short-read sequencing. Combining the two technologies positions us to reach more applications, accelerate the pace of genomic discovery and bolster our innovation engine which has been a hallmark of Illumina since our inception,” said Francis deSouza, President and Chief Executive Officer of Illumina. “PacBio’s relentless pursuit to improve sequencing accuracy, while driving down the cost, underscores the potential of long-reads to expand sequencing to new customers and applications.”

Based on its novel Single Molecule, Real-Time (SMRT) technology, Pacific Biosciences’ products enable de novo genome assembly to finish genomes in order to more fully identify, annotate and decipher genomic structures; full-length transcript analysis to improve annotations in reference genomes, characterize alternatively spliced isoforms in important gene families, and find novel genes; targeted sequencing to more comprehensively characterize genetic variations; and real-time kinetic information for epigenome characterization. Pacific Biosciences’ technology reportedly provides high accuracy, ultra-long reads, uniform coverage, and the ability to simultaneously detect epigenetic changes. PacBio sequencing systems, including consumables and software, provide a simple, fast, end-to-end workflow for SMRT Sequencing.

“Illumina continues to democratize the use of sequencing at an unprecedented rate. Through this combination, thousands of researchers will now have direct access to this technology,” said Michael Hunkapiller, PhD, Chief Executive Officer of Pacific Biosciences. “Illumina and Pacific Biosciences have shared values and a commitment to innovation. Our complementary sequencing technology, once integrated, will offer customers a new standard of insight and understanding, opening new frontiers of genomic utility.”

Illumina hosted a conference call to discuss the transaction on November 1; interested parties may access a webcast of the teleconference through the Investor Relations section of Illumina’s website under the “Company” tab. Alternatively, a replay of the conference call will be available from 4:30 p.m. Pacific Time (7:30 p.m. Eastern Time) from November 1 through November 8 by dialing 1(888)843-7419, or (630)652-3042 outside North America, both with passcode 47821173#.