Johnson & Johnson Family of Companies
NEWS
The two most historically deal-conservative Big Pharmas have the most money to play with for a major M&A transaction, according to a recent Stifel analysis.
The FDA in September issued two rejections for spinal muscular atrophy therapies—both linked to manufacturing problems—and granted approvals in Barth syndrome and for a subcutaneous version of Merck’s Keytruda that could be key to the blockbuster’s future earnings.
Nipocalimab, approved as Imaavy for generalized myasthenia gravis earlier this year, failed to show significantly added benefit when used with an anti-TNFα therapy in patients with rheumatoid arthritis.
President Donald Trump first threatened pharma tariffs in February and recently said they were imminent. Johnson & Johnson’s new investment adds to a $55 billion pledge made by the company in March.
Johnson & Johnson’s $23.7 billion in second-quarter earnings, driven by cancer and neuroscience drugs, exceeded analyst expectations, while CEO Joaquin Duato set a target of $50 billion in oncology sales by 2030.
H2 2025 catalysts to watch, biopharma implications of President Trump’s tax law, KalVista’s new hereditary angioedema drug that Marty Makary reportedly tried to reject, another lawsuit aimed at Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and a plea from patients with ALS for access to BrainStorm’s NurOwn.
Analysts at Truist Securities called J&J’s CAR T readout “compelling,” noting that the efficacy figures could position the cell therapy as a formidable competitor to the current standard of care, Gilead’s Yescarta.
J&J has a multi-year head start, but Gilead believes it can win market share by delivering a drug with better safety and at least as good efficacy.
R&D spending across the global pharmaceutical sector climbed 1.5% in 2024, according to unreleased data from Evaluate Pharma.
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