Valeant Pharmaceuticals announced an agreement to acquire Medicis Pharmaceutical for $44 per share in cash, in a deal worth approximately $2.6 billion. The transaction is expected to close in the first half of 2013 and has been approved by each company's board of directors. The combined operations will be located in Scottsdale, AZ, and will operate under the name Medicis. The company's dermatology R&D operations will be located in Laval, Quebec, Scottsdale, AZ, and Petaluma, CA, and corporate support functions will be based in New Jersey.