Merck is an A+ credit, a global oncology powerhouse, and still, about half its 2024 pharma revenue came from a single product: Keytruda, a product whose loss of exclusivity will hit around 2028 in the U.S. S&P Global Ratings calls that kind of concentration a “material weakness.” Merck isn’t alone. A new S&P analysis of…
Outpatient clinics are becoming critical Infrastructure for drug trials
Investors are pouring money into medical outpatient buildings just as pharma races to decentralize clinical research. The overlap is starting to look less like coincidence. When you look at the latest U.S. office numbers, it might appear that medical and pharmaceutical companies are retreating from real estate. Central business district towers are struggling with high…
FDA approves pair of therapies for rare pediatric cancers: Novartis’ Lutathera and Day One’s Ojemda
The FDA has signed off on two novel therapies targeting rare pediatric cancers. Novartis’ Lutathera targets aggressive gastroenteropancreatic neuroendocrine tumors (GEP-NETs) in children 12 and up, while Day One Biopharma’s Ojemda (tovorafenib) tackles treatment-resistant BRAF-mutated relapsed or refractory pediatric low-grade glioma (pLGG) with a BRAF fusion or rearrangement, or BRAF V600 mutation These approvals offer…
Why Merck shelled out $30B+ on R&D in 2023
In 2023, Merck & Co. made a considerable investment in research and development, spending more than $30 billion. This figure represents more than double the company’s R&D spending ($13.5 billion) in 2022. The closest competitor in terms of R&D investment was Roche Pharmaceuticals, with a 2023 R&D expenditure of roughly $14.7 billion. This sum is…
Are Big Pharma giants getting the right ROI on their R&D investments? A visual exploration
While annual reports show broadly similar R&D strategies among Merck & Co., Pfizer, Johnson & Johnson and AbbVie, their 2020–2023 financial metrics reveal a concerning trend. Merck & Co. may be the new top dog of Big Pharma, but the firm’s 1.4% revenue growth in 2023 represents a significant slowdown. Pfizer’s 41.7% revenue decline from…
The story behind Biogen’s 1,000 job cuts and R&D refocus
Cambridge-based biotech Biogen has unveiled plans to cut 1,000 jobs, or 11% of its workforce, as it prepares for the launch of its newly approved Alzheimer’s disease drug, Leqembi (lecanemab) that it developed with Eisai. This move follows a pattern of significant layoffs, with the company having cut 885 jobs last year after the troubled…
Here’s what molecular shape can tell you about pharma innovation
Is it possible that pharmaceutical innovation has accelerated over the past two decades — with the novelty of small molecule and peptide drugs steadily increasing? That’s the conclusion suggested by a recent study published in ACS Medicinal Chemistry Letters, which found roughly 65% of FDA-approved drugs in 2020 were structurally novel. Last year’s drug approvals…