(Reuters) – Heart diseases-focused drug developer Cytokinetics is weighing options after receiving takeover interest, Bloomberg News reported on Tuesday, citing people familiar with the matter.
The company has attracted interest from at least one major drugmaker in recent months, and is now evaluating its next steps, according to the report.
A Cytokinetics spokesperson said the company does not comment on M&A speculation.
The company is evaluating its experimental heart disease drug, aficamten, as a potential treatment for hypertrophic cardiomyopathy, which causes thickening of heart muscles and can lead to cardiac arrest.
Late-stage data from the drug is expected at the end of the year, and potential bidders may wait until the data is reported, according to the Bloomberg report.
Shares of Cytokinetics were up 5.7% at $33.92 in afternoon trading.
(Reporting by Pratik Jain in Bengaluru; Editing by Shilpi Majumdar)
