Eli Lilly And Co (LLY  ) has agreed to acquire DICE Therapeutics Inc (DICE  ), a biopharmaceutical company that leverages its proprietary DELSCAPE technology platform to develop oral therapeutic candidates for immunology indications.

Lilly will commence a tender offer to acquire all outstanding shares of DICE for a purchase price of $48 per share in cash (an aggregate of approximately $2.4 billion).

Kevin Judice, CEO of DICE Therapeutics, added: "We're eager to see our pipeline, including our oral IL-17 inhibitors, DC-806 and DC-853, benefit from Lilly's resources and global reach."

The purchase price payable at closing represents a premium of approximately 40% to the 30-day volume-weighted average trading price of DICE's common stock ended on June 16, 2023.

The transaction is expected to close in the third quarter of 2023.

The first patient has been dosed in a dose-ranging Phase 2b trial of DICE's lead oral IL-17 inhibitor, DC-806, for moderate-to-severe psoriasis.

Continued enrollment of participants in DICE's Phase 1 clinical trial of DC-853, a second oral IL-17 antagonist, in healthy volunteers. Topline data are expected in the second half of 2023.

Price Action: DICE shares are up 38.1% at $46.75, and LLY shares are up 1.07% at $452.48 on the last check Tuesday.