Shire offers to buy Baxter drug spinoff for $30B in move to boost rare disease treatments

Irish drugmaker Shire PLC Is offering to buy Baxalta Inc. for about $30 billion in stock in a move to solidify its position in rare disease treatments.

Deerfield, Illinois-based Baxalta was spun off of Baxter International Inc. in July and focuses on bleeding disorders. Dublin-based Shire makes treatments for a range of conditions including attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, epilepsy and hunter syndrome.

In a statement, Shire urged Baxalta to engage in negotiations. It made the offer to the company on July 10 and said the offer implies a value of $45.23 per share, a 36 percent premium for Baxalta.

Shares of Baxalta rose more than 20 percent to $40.10 in premarketing trading. Shire's stock fell nearly 3 percent to $260.92.