AstraZeneca, Novartis Continued Divestment Sprees In 2018, While Peers Joined The Action

25 Feb 2019

• By Joseph Haas and Janet Haniak

While leading large pharma with seven out-licensing or divestiture deals apiece during 2018, AstraZeneca and Novartis each slowed their pace somewhat. But several peer companies followed suit, as there were 31 such deals among the 20 largest biopharma firms last year.

Perhaps it reflects a greater focus on core competencies or an increased emphasis on specialty indications, particularly within oncology; or maybe it is just a sign of smarter portfolio management. Opinions vary on the motivations but not about the reality that large pharma companies are doing a lot of divestment and licensing deals.

In 2018, the 20 largest biopharmas completed 31 such deals according to Pharma Intelligence’s Strategic Transactions database – and that...