Pfizer Acquires Metsera, a Leading Obesity Drug Developer, for $4.9B
Pharmaceutical titan Pfizer disclosed on Monday its plans to acquire obesity drug creator Metsera. The deal, valued at an upfront payment of $4.9 billion, could potentially rise to a total of $7.3 billion with additional payments.
This acquisition provides Pfizer with access to Metsera’s portfolio of next-generation weight loss medicines. These include monthly injectable treatments that could rival market leaders such as Novo Nordisk’s Wegovy and Eli Lilly’s Zepbound.
Under the terms of the agreement, Pfizer will pay $47.50 per share in cash, a 43% premium to Metsera’s closing price on the previous Friday. Shareholders stand to receive an additional $22.50 per share through contingent value rights tied to clinical and regulatory milestones.
The deal is expected to close in the fourth quarter of 2025. It signifies Pfizer’s strategic move into the rapidly expanding obesity treatment market, which is projected to reach $150 billion by the early 2030s.
Metsera’s lead candidates include MET-097i, a GLP-1 receptor agonist available in weekly and monthly doses, and MET-233i, an amylin analog. Preliminary results indicate that MET-233i helped patients lose approximately 8% of their body weight after a five-week period.
Analysts predict that Metsera’s unique obesity medicines could generate approximately $5 billion in peak annual sales.
Source: Business Wire