Morphic Therapeutic Acquisition, Valuation, Funding & Investors
Morphic Therapeutic was acquired by Eli Lilly for $3.2B in July 2024.
Cumulative funding Morphic Therapeutic raised
$135M
across 3 funding rounds
Key investors in Morphic Therapeutic
Polaris Partners
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Timothy A. SpringerSchrödinger
Pfizer Venture Investments
SR One
Omega Funds
ShangPharma
Novo Holdings
About Morphic Therapeutic
Morphic Therapeutic is a NASDAQ-listed biotechnology company developing oral small-molecule integrin inhibitors for autoimmune diseases, fibrosis, cancer, and cardiovascular conditions. Headquartered in Waltham, Massachusetts, since 2014, it advances MMPD2 inhibitors through Phase 2 trials for inflammatory bowel disease, partnering with Roche for co-development.
Founded
2015
HQ
Boston, MAWebsite
Status
Acquired
Customer focus
B2B
Revenue model
Licensing
Valuation
$3.2B (acquired Jul 2024)
Sectors
Morphic Therapeutic Acquisition
Morphic Therapeutic was acquired by Eli Lilly for $3.2B on 8 July 2024.
Before the acquisition Morphic Therapeutic had raised $135M across 3 funding rounds.
Morphic Therapeutic, a Waltham, Massachusetts-based biopharmaceutical company, develops oral integrin therapies for serious chronic diseases, led by MORF-057, an oral small molecule α4β7 integrin inhibitor in two Phase 2 trials for ulcerative colitis and one Phase 2 trial for Crohn’s disease, with a preclinical pipeline targeting autoimmune diseases, pulmonary hypertension, fibrosis, and cancer. Eli Lilly and Company announced on July 8, 2024, a definitive agreement to acquire Morphic for $3.2 billion in an all-cash tender offer at $57 per share, representing a 79% premium to the July 5 closing price and 87% to the 30-day VWAP. The deal, approved by both boards and not subject to financing conditions, closed successfully, subject to regulatory clearances and tender of a majority of shares, with completion initially expected in Q3 2024. The acquisition expands Lilly’s immunology and gastroenterology portfolio, complementing its existing investments in inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) therapies and positioning it against Takeda’s injectable Entyvio blockbuster with an oral alternative. Morphic’s MORF-057 advances ahead of rivals like Gilead’s candidate, building on Lilly’s prior preclinical oral α4β7 acquisition from Dice Therapeutics. Phase 2b ulcerative colitis data is anticipated in the first half of 2025, with Crohn’s primary completion in 2026, enhancing Lilly’s autoimmune disease presence amid competitive dynamics in the IBD market.
| Acquirer | Date | Type | Price |
|---|---|---|---|
| 8 Jul 2024 | Strategic M&A | $3.2B |
Morphic Therapeutic Funding History
Morphic Therapeutic has raised a total of $135M across 3 funding rounds.
Morphic Therapeutic's first fundraising round was a $3M seed round in January 2016. The most recent completed round was a $80M Series B in September 2018.
Morphic Therapeutic funding rounds
| Date | Stage | Investors | Raised | Deal Summary |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sep 2018 | Series B | Novo Holdings (lead); Omega Funds (lead); ShangPharma; Pfizer Venture Investments; Polaris Partners; Invus; SR One; Timothy A. Springer; Schrödinger; EcoR1 Capital | $80M | Morphic Therapeutic, a Waltham, MA-based biotechnology company, develops a new generation of oral integrin therapies leveraging integrin biology breakthroughs from scientific founder Tim Springer and a partnership with Schrödinger for computational chemistry design. The company announced the completion of an $80 million Series B financing on September 26, 2018, co-led by Omega Funds and Novo Holdings, with participation from Invus, EcoR1 Capital, Polaris Partners, Pfizer Venture Investments, SR One, ShangPharma, and Timothy A. Springer. The funds were intended to advance its two lead integrin-targeting programs through clinical proof-of-concept studies and to initiate IND-enabling and clinical studies for multiple additional programs in 2019, targeting inflammation, fibrosis, oncology, and cardiometabolic diseases. Morphic's platform addresses historical challenges in oral integrin inhibitors, where prior attempts inadvertently promoted integrin activity due to the receptor's multiple conformations, leading to clinical failures. The company claims to have established the world's only broad-based structure-enabled integrin drug discovery platform, building on Springer's 1980s discoveries that enabled first-generation injectable integrin therapies, six of which are approved for conditions like multiple sclerosis, ulcerative colitis, Crohn's disease, plaque psoriasis, and acute coronary syndrome. New board additions from the round included Otello Stampacchia of Omega Funds and Nilesh Kumar of Novo Ventures. This Series B followed a June 2016 Series A with backers like Polaris Partners, Pfizer Venture Investments, and SR One. Morphic Holding, Inc. was later acquired by Eli Lilly and Company, with delisting on October 18, 2024. |
| Jun 2016 | Series A | Pfizer Venture Investments (lead); SR One (lead); ShangPharma; Polaris Partners; AbbVie; Omega Funds; Timothy A. Springer; Schrödinger | $52M | Morphic Therapeutic, a Waltham, Massachusetts-based biotechnology company founded in 2015, completed a $51.5 million Series A financing round on June 30, 2016, co-led by SR One and Pfizer Venture Investments. Participating investors included AbbVie Biotech Ventures, Omega Funds, Polaris Partners, Schrödinger, Inc., ShangPharma Investment Group, and founding investor Timothy A. Springer. The company translates discoveries from Timothy Springer's laboratory at Harvard Medical School and Boston Children’s Hospital, focusing on developing next-generation oral small-molecule therapies targeting integrins for immunological, fibrotic, neoplastic, and vascular diseases. Integrins, discovered by Springer in the 1980s, have led to several approved injectable therapies for conditions like multiple sclerosis, ulcerative colitis, Crohn's disease, plaque psoriasis, and acute coronary syndrome. Morphic aims to advance integrin targeting with rationally designed small molecules, leveraging structural knowledge from Springer's lab, expertise in avoiding harmful inhibitor effects, and Schrödinger’s computational design capabilities to enable oral integrin drugs. The financing supports Morphic's platform to create a new wave of integrin drug discovery. A subsequent Series B round of $80 million occurred in September 2018 with different investors. |
| Jan 2016 | Seed | Polaris Partners; Timothy A. Springer; Schrödinger | $3M | Morphic Therapeutic is a biotechnology company developing oral integrin therapies for immunological, fibrotic, neoplastic, and vascular diseases, based on discoveries from Timothy Springer's laboratory at Harvard Medical School and Boston Children’s Hospital. The company was founded in 2015 with initial backers including Polaris Partners, Schrödinger, Inc., T.A. Springer, and ShangPharma Investment Group. In June 2016, Morphic closed a $51.5 million Series A round co-led by SR One and Pfizer Venture Investments, with participation from Omega Funds, AbbVie Ventures, and the founding investors. The funding supports advancement of next-generation small-molecule integrin antagonists addressing limitations of prior antibody therapies. |
Who has invested in Morphic Therapeutic?
11 investors have backed Morphic Therapeutic across its funding rounds, including Polaris Partners, Timothy A. Springer, Schrödinger, Pfizer Venture Investments, SR One and Omega Funds.
Lead investors include Novo Holdings, Omega Funds, Pfizer Venture Investments and SR One.
Morphic Therapeutic Investors
| Investor | HQ | Rounds | Role | First check |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Boston, MA | 3 | Participant | Jan 2016 | |
| Timothy A. Springer | United States | 3 | Participant | Jan 2016 |
| New York City, NY | 3 | Participant | Jan 2016 | |
 China | 2 | Participant | Jun 2016 | |
| New York City, NY | 2 | Lead | Jun 2016 | |
| United States | 2 | Lead | Jun 2016 | |
| Boston, MA | 2 | Lead | Jun 2016 | |
 Copenhagen | 1 | Lead | Sep 2018 | |
| New York City, NY | 1 | Participant | Sep 2018 | |
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Benchmark 350K+ Funding Rounds and Disclosed VC Valuation Multiples
Sign up to see data on 350K+ funding rounds and disclosed revenue and EBITDA valuation multiples, from seed, through growth stage, to pre-IPO.
Start Free TrialMorphic Therapeutic Competitors
Morphic Therapeutic competitors include listed companies like Denali Therapeutics, Hypera, Arcus Biosciences and Hebei Changshan, and private ones like Cytovant and Sinovac Life Sciences.
| Company | HQ | Status | Revenue | EBITDA | Valuation | Revenue Multiple |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| United States | Publicly listed | - | ($541M) | $3.2B | 91.5x | |
 Brazil | Publicly listed | $1.5B | $430M | $3.2B | 2.6x | |
| Shanghai | Private | - | - | $3.3B | - | |
| United States | Publicly listed | $247M | ($376M) | $3.3B | 21.1x | |
| China | Publicly listed | $130M | ($28M) | $3.1B | - | |
| Beijing | Private | - | - | $3.3B | - |
Morphic Therapeutic Public Comps
Morphic Therapeutic is no longer listed, but its public comps include Denali Therapeutics, Hypera, Arcus Biosciences, Hebei Changshan, Jiangsu Nhwa, Walvax Biotechnology, Tasly, Livzon Pharmaceutical Group, Jilin Aodong and MBX Biosciences.
| Last FY | EV/Revenue | EV/EBITDA | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Revenue | EBITDA | Last FY | LTM | 2027E | Last FY | LTM | 2027E | |
| - | ($541M) | - | 91.5x | (4.7x) | (5.2x) | |||
| $1.5B | $430M | 2.9x | 2.6x | 10.2x | 8.3x | |||
| $247M | ($376M) | 10.8x | 21.1x | (7.1x) | (6.5x) | |||
| $130M | ($28M) | 27.0x | - | (123.7x) | - | |||
| $881M | $202M | 3.1x | 2.9x | 13.5x | 13.3x | |||
| $361M | $73M | 9.0x | 10.8x | 44.5x | 36.9x | |||
| $1.2B | $265M | 2.2x | 2.1x | 10.2x | 9.2x | |||
| $1.8B | $477M | 1.5x | 1.6x | 5.5x | 5.5x | |||
This data is available for Pro users. Sign up to see all Morphic Therapeutic competitors and their valuation data. Start Free Trial | ||||||||
Common questions about Morphic Therapeutic
| When was Morphic Therapeutic founded? | Morphic Therapeutic was founded in 2015. |
| Where is Morphic Therapeutic headquartered? | Morphic Therapeutic is headquartered in Boston, MA, United States. |
| Is Morphic Therapeutic publicly listed? | No, Morphic Therapeutic was acquired by Eli Lilly in July 2024. |
| Who acquired Morphic Therapeutic? | Morphic Therapeutic was acquired by Eli Lilly in July 2024. |
| How much was Morphic Therapeutic acquired for? | Morphic Therapeutic was acquired for $3.2B in July 2024. |
| How much funding has Morphic Therapeutic raised? | Morphic Therapeutic has raised $135M across 3 funding rounds. |
| What was Morphic Therapeutic's last funding round? | Morphic Therapeutic's last funding round was a $80M Series B in September 2018, led by Novo Holdings and Omega Funds. |
| Who are Morphic Therapeutic's investors? | Morphic Therapeutic's investors include Polaris Partners, Timothy A. Springer, Schrödinger, ShangPharma, Pfizer Venture Investments, SR One, Omega Funds, Novo Holdings, Invus, AbbVie and 1 other. |
| Which companies are comparable to Morphic Therapeutic? | Companies comparable to Morphic Therapeutic include Denali Therapeutics, Hypera, Cytovant, Arcus Biosciences, Hebei Changshan and Sinovac Life Sciences. |
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