Pfizer apparently had more in the tank after the high-profile battle to acquire Metsera earlier this fall. The company has licensed a new GLP-1 from YaoPharma.
After weathering a bidding war to acquire Metsera and refill its obesity pipeline, Pfizer has added another molecule to the cabinet, entering into a $1.9 billion licensing deal with the Chinese firm YaoPharma for an investigational GLP-1 receptor agonist.
The deal has Pfizer paying YaoPharma $150 million upfront for YPO5002, with development, regulatory and commercial milestones bringing the total potential payment to $1.9 billion. YaoPharma, a subsidiary of Fosun Pharma, will complete an ongoing Phase I trial for the drug, according to Tuesday’s announcement, after which Pfizer take the reins for further development, manufacturing and commercialization.
“The $150M upfront payment reflects prudent capital conservation,” wrote analysts at BMO Capital Markets Tuesday morning, especially after the bidding war Pfizer went through to acquire next-gen obesity drug manufacturer Metsera. “Limited information is available on YP05002, but we view obesity diversification as promising in the short term,” the analysts added.
Nevertheless, BMO analysts noted that given Pfizer’s struggles with a series of GLP-1 molecules developed in-house—notably lotiglipron and danuglipron— YPO5002 might structurally resemble Eli Lilly’s orforglipron, which the pharma licensed from Chugai in 2018 and now has at the brink of regulatory submission. Lilly has said it will file for FDA approval by the end of this year.
YaoPharma’s Phase I trial for YPO5002 is enrolling 76 patients in Australia, testing three ascending doses, with completion expected in April 2026.
Pfizer plans to test YPO5002 in combination with its only other remaining in-house obesity asset, PF-07976016, which is currently in Phase II trials that are expected to finish sometime this month.
The YaoPharma deal caps off an eventful year in the obesity market for Pfizer. In April, the company dropped lead obesity molecule danuglipron due to liver toxicity concerns, reducing its pipeline to just PF-07976016. Five months later, to refill its pipeline, Pfizer tried to purchase the startup obesity biotech Metsera for $4.9 billion.
But rival pharma giant Novo Nordisk stepped in and attempted to swipe Metsera out from under Pfizer, initiating a bidding war and legal tussle, with multiple escalating offers, FTC scrutiny and public recriminations. Pfizer finally prevailed with a price tag of $10 billion.
Acquiring Metsera brought Pfizer two prize assets: the long acting GLP-1 receptor agonist MET-097i and amylin analog MET-233i. Metsera is also developing two oral GLP-1 therapies that are set to enter the clinic soon.
