Shares of Seagen Inc. shot up 14.7% toward a seven-month high in morning trading Friday, after The Wall Street Journal reported that Merck & Co. Inc. is looking into buying the cancer-focused biotechnology company. Meanwhile, drug-maker Merck’s stock eased 0.2%. Although terms of a potential buyout were not mentioned in the report, Seagen’s market capitalization was about $31.2 billion at current stock prices. Citing people familiar with the matter, the WSJ report said talks have been under way for a while and a deal isn’t imminent, and the companies could only strike a marketing agreement. Seagen’s stock has climbed 8.9% year to date and Merck shares have advanced 10.6%, while the iShares Biotechnology ETF have tumbled 28.4% and the Dow Jones Industrial Average as lost 18.1%.
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