With $6 billion left in firepower, Pfizer is planning transactions in the hundreds of millions to the low-billions range, particularly in internal medicine and immunology and inflammation, Guggenheim reported.
Pfizer could lay low after the high-profile bidding war to secure Metsera but executives have signaled—with actions and words—that they are not done with dealmaking.
Pfizer still has about $6 billion in business development capacity after the Metsera fight, CEO Albert Bourla reportedly told Guggenheim analysts during a recent lunch. This cash is earmarked for smaller transactions than the $10 billion it dropped on Metsera in the end.
Pfizer has four key focus areas, Guggenheim reported. Its oncology pipeline was topped up following its May deal with 3SBio—Pfizer licensed a PD-1/VEGF bispecific antibody for solid tumors for $1.5 billion upfront and up to $6 billion total—and 2023 acquisition of Seagen, and the pharma is prioritizing in-house development for its vaccine franchise. So going forward, Pfizer will specifically look for assets in two other areas, internal medicine and immunology, Bourla told the firm.
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Pfizer plans to use the $6 billion left on smaller transactions in the hundreds of millions to the low-billions range, Guggenheim reported.
On Tuesday, Pfizer signed one such deal with Fusun Pharma’s YaoPharma. The New York pharma has licensed a GLP-1 receptor agonist from the China-based company, paying $150 million upfront and a potential $1.9 billion on the back end in milestones.
Reacting to the YaoPharma deal on Tuesday, BMO Capital Markets said Pfizer showed discipline with the deal terms but still achieved diversification in the process.
“We appreciate the low upfront payment made by Pfizer for this obesity diversification as conservative capital deployment is still favored by shareholders conscious of the dividend payout ratio,” the firm wrote. This was especially prudent after the Metsera bidding war.
Meanwhile, Pfizer is still executing a strict cost cutting plan with savings of $4.5 billion expected to be realized by the end of 2025 and $7.2 billion by the end of 2028.
