By Colin Kellaher

Shares of Sage Therapeutics jumped nearly 40% in premarket trading Monday after the biopharmaceutical company received an unsolicited buyout bid from partner Biogen.

Biogen, which already owns a roughly 10.2% stake in Sage, has proposed buying the rest of the company for $7.22 a share in cash in a deal that would value Sage at about $442 million.

The Biogen bid represents a 30% premium to Friday's closing price of $5.55 for Sage, but Sage shares were recently up 38% to $7.66 in premarket trading, an indication that investors think a better deal can be had.

Sage late Friday said its board will carefully review and evaluate Biogen's proposal.

Biogen and Sage, both based in Cambridge, Mass., are partners on Zurzuvae, the first and only U.S. approved drug for post-partum depression.

In a research note, analysts at Truist said they believe Biogen's bid is roughly equal to Sage's cash on hand and undervalues Zurzuvae, which they said is off to a slow but steady launch trajectory.

Truist also notes that while some investors may be assuming that another company may be interested in Sage, Biogen appears to be the best suitor given its 50% ownership of Zurzuvae.

Write to Colin Kellaher at colin.kellaher@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

January 13, 2025 06:39 ET (11:39 GMT)

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