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PFE Buys Oral GLP-1 Drug From China Biotech to Boost Obesity Presence
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Key Takeaways
Pfizer is licensing global rights to YP05002, an oral GLP-1 agonist now in phase I.
YaoPharma will finish phase I before Pfizer advances YP05002 and pairs it with PF-07976016.
The deal follows Pfizer's $10B Metsera buyout as it works to regain ground in obesity.
Pfizer (PFE - Free Report) announced that it is in-licensing exclusive global rights to develop, manufacture and commercialize YP05002, an oral small molecule GLP-1 receptor agonist (GLP-1 RA) from YaoPharma, a subsidiary of China’s leading drugmaker, Shanghai Fosun Pharmaceutical.
YP05002 is currently being evaluated in phase I for treating obesity. Once-daily oral small molecule GLP-1 RAs are believed to have the potential to transform obesity treatment and broaden access.
YaoPharma will complete the phase I study on YP05002 before handing over exclusive rights to Pfizer to further develop the candidate. Pfizer plans to evaluate YP05002 in combination with its own GIPR antagonist PF-07976016, which is currently in phase II development and also with other small molecule candidates in its early-stage pipeline.
Under the deal, YaoPharma will receive an upfront payment of $150 million from Pfizer, as well as the right to future milestone payments of up to $1.935 billion and tiered royalties on sales, if approved.
YaoPharma Strengthens Pfizer’s Obesity Presence
The global collaboration and license agreement with YaoPharma strengthens Pfizer’s presence in the obesity space, where it has been looking to get a foothold after it scrapped the development of danuglipron, a weight-loss pill, earlier this year. To pursue this objective, in November, it acquired obesity drugmaker, Metsera, for $10 billion, after a heated bidding war with Danish rival, Novo Nordisk (NVO - Free Report) .
The acquisition adds Metsera’s four novel clinical-stage incretin and amylin programs in obesity, which are expected to generate billions of dollars in peak sales.
Pfizer failed to develop its own obesity candidate earlier this year. In April, Pfizer discontinued the development of its GLP-1R agonist, danuglipron, which was being developed as a weight loss pill. Pfizer took the decision after one of the participants in the dose-optimization studies developed a potentially drug-induced liver injury, which resolved after danuglipron was discontinued. The deal with Metsera and the license agreement with Yaopharma bring Pfizer back strongly on the obesity map.
LLY, NVO & Others Also Make Oral GLP-1 Pills
The obesity market is expected to expand to $100 billion by 2030, according to data from Goldman Sachs. Eli Lilly (LLY - Free Report) and Novo Nordisk presently dominate the market, with their popular GLP-1 drugs, Zepbound and Wegovy, respectively, which are injectable treatments.
Novo Nordisk, LLY, Structure Therapeutics and Viking Therapeutics (VKTX - Free Report) are racing to introduce oral weight-loss pills as these have the potential to be more convenient alternatives to injections like Zepbound and Wegovy. Novo Nordisk has already filed regulatory applications for an oral version of Wegovy in the United States and the EU and also has an oral pill, amycretin (a dual GLP-1 and amylin receptor agonist) in its pipeline. The FDA is expected to decide on the Wegovy oral formulation NDA later this year.
Lilly has announced positive data across six studies on orforglipron, a once-daily oral GLP-1 small molecule, in obesity and type II diabetes. Lilly plans to file regulatory applications for orforglipron in obesity later this year, setting up the timeline for a potential launch next year. For the type II diabetes indication, Lilly plans to file regulatory applications in the first half of 2026.
Viking’s dual GIPR/GLP-1 receptor agonist, VK2735, is being developed both as oral and subcutaneous formulations for the treatment of obesity.
Earlier this week, Structure Therapeutics announced positive top-line data from the ACCESS clinical program on aleniglipron, its once-daily oral small molecule GLP-1 RA, for treating obesity. In the ACCESS studies, aleniglipron delivered clinically meaningful and dose-dependent weight loss without any evidence of a plateau by week 36. The safety profile of aleniglipron seen in the studies was appropriate for chronic use. Structure Therapeutics is gearing up to initiate late-stage studies of aleniglipron for obesity around mid-2026, pending alignment with the FDA.
PFE’s Price Performance, Valuation and Estimates
Pfizer’s stock has declined 4.5% so far this year against an increase of 12.8% for the industry.
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research
From a valuation standpoint, Pfizer appears attractive relative to the industry and is trading below its 5-year mean. Going by the price/earnings ratio, the company’s shares currently trade at 8.04 forward earnings, lower than 16.48 for the industry and the stock’s 5-year mean of 10.43.
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research
The Zacks Consensus Estimate for 2025 earnings has risen from $3.08 per share to $3.14 per share, while that for 2026 has been stable at $3.15 per share over the past 60 days.
Image: Bigstock
PFE Buys Oral GLP-1 Drug From China Biotech to Boost Obesity Presence
Key Takeaways
Pfizer (PFE - Free Report) announced that it is in-licensing exclusive global rights to develop, manufacture and commercialize YP05002, an oral small molecule GLP-1 receptor agonist (GLP-1 RA) from YaoPharma, a subsidiary of China’s leading drugmaker, Shanghai Fosun Pharmaceutical.
YP05002 is currently being evaluated in phase I for treating obesity. Once-daily oral small molecule GLP-1 RAs are believed to have the potential to transform obesity treatment and broaden access.
YaoPharma will complete the phase I study on YP05002 before handing over exclusive rights to Pfizer to further develop the candidate. Pfizer plans to evaluate YP05002 in combination with its own GIPR antagonist PF-07976016, which is currently in phase II development and also with other small molecule candidates in its early-stage pipeline.
Under the deal, YaoPharma will receive an upfront payment of $150 million from Pfizer, as well as the right to future milestone payments of up to $1.935 billion and tiered royalties on sales, if approved.
YaoPharma Strengthens Pfizer’s Obesity Presence
The global collaboration and license agreement with YaoPharma strengthens Pfizer’s presence in the obesity space, where it has been looking to get a foothold after it scrapped the development of danuglipron, a weight-loss pill, earlier this year. To pursue this objective, in November, it acquired obesity drugmaker, Metsera, for $10 billion, after a heated bidding war with Danish rival, Novo Nordisk (NVO - Free Report) .
The acquisition adds Metsera’s four novel clinical-stage incretin and amylin programs in obesity, which are expected to generate billions of dollars in peak sales.
Pfizer failed to develop its own obesity candidate earlier this year. In April, Pfizer discontinued the development of its GLP-1R agonist, danuglipron, which was being developed as a weight loss pill. Pfizer took the decision after one of the participants in the dose-optimization studies developed a potentially drug-induced liver injury, which resolved after danuglipron was discontinued. The deal with Metsera and the license agreement with Yaopharma bring Pfizer back strongly on the obesity map.
LLY, NVO & Others Also Make Oral GLP-1 Pills
The obesity market is expected to expand to $100 billion by 2030, according to data from Goldman Sachs. Eli Lilly (LLY - Free Report) and Novo Nordisk presently dominate the market, with their popular GLP-1 drugs, Zepbound and Wegovy, respectively, which are injectable treatments.
Novo Nordisk, LLY, Structure Therapeutics and Viking Therapeutics (VKTX - Free Report) are racing to introduce oral weight-loss pills as these have the potential to be more convenient alternatives to injections like Zepbound and Wegovy. Novo Nordisk has already filed regulatory applications for an oral version of Wegovy in the United States and the EU and also has an oral pill, amycretin (a dual GLP-1 and amylin receptor agonist) in its pipeline. The FDA is expected to decide on the Wegovy oral formulation NDA later this year.
Lilly has announced positive data across six studies on orforglipron, a once-daily oral GLP-1 small molecule, in obesity and type II diabetes. Lilly plans to file regulatory applications for orforglipron in obesity later this year, setting up the timeline for a potential launch next year. For the type II diabetes indication, Lilly plans to file regulatory applications in the first half of 2026.
Viking’s dual GIPR/GLP-1 receptor agonist, VK2735, is being developed both as oral and subcutaneous formulations for the treatment of obesity.
Earlier this week, Structure Therapeutics announced positive top-line data from the ACCESS clinical program on aleniglipron, its once-daily oral small molecule GLP-1 RA, for treating obesity. In the ACCESS studies, aleniglipron delivered clinically meaningful and dose-dependent weight loss without any evidence of a plateau by week 36. The safety profile of aleniglipron seen in the studies was appropriate for chronic use. Structure Therapeutics is gearing up to initiate late-stage studies of aleniglipron for obesity around mid-2026, pending alignment with the FDA.
PFE’s Price Performance, Valuation and Estimates
Pfizer’s stock has declined 4.5% so far this year against an increase of 12.8% for the industry.
From a valuation standpoint, Pfizer appears attractive relative to the industry and is trading below its 5-year mean. Going by the price/earnings ratio, the company’s shares currently trade at 8.04 forward earnings, lower than 16.48 for the industry and the stock’s 5-year mean of 10.43.
The Zacks Consensus Estimate for 2025 earnings has risen from $3.08 per share to $3.14 per share, while that for 2026 has been stable at $3.15 per share over the past 60 days.
Pfizer has a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.