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ABBV Stock Slides 5%: Is J&J's Icotyde a Threat to Skyrizi?
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Key Takeaways
AbbVie shares dropped 5.2% as J&J secured FDA approval for Icotyde in plaque psoriasis.
Skyrizi, AbbVie's top drug, posted $17.6B sales in 2025 and is key to post-Humira growth.
Icotyde's oral delivery and expanding indications may intensify IL-23 competition over time.
Shares of AbbVie (ABBV - Free Report) fell 5.2% on Wednesday, wiping out more than $20 billion in market value. This selloff comes as investors grow wary of Johnson & Johnson’s (JNJ - Free Report) newly approved immunology therapy, Icotyde, which could emerge as a competitive threat to Skyrizi, a key growth driver for AbbVie.
J&J announced yesterday that the FDA approved Icotyde, an interleukin-23 (IL-23) receptor antagonist, for the treatment of moderate-to-severe plaque psoriasis in patients aged 12 years and above who weigh at least 40 kg and are candidates for systemic therapy or phototherapy. J&J noted that this approval marks a significant milestone, making Icotyde the first targeted oral peptide designed to precisely block the IL-23 receptor.
Skyrizi has been a key pillar of AbbVie’s growth strategy following Humira’s loss of exclusivity, generating multi-billion-dollar annual sales and delivering strong double-digit growth since launch. The drug is currently the company’s top-selling medication, with sales rising 50% year over year to $17.6 billion in 2025. Management expects Skyrizi to generate approximately $21.5 billion in sales this year.
While Skyrizi’s efficacy and dosing regimen might offer advantages, Icotyde’s approval in the immunology space poses a threat to AbbVie. The differentiated mechanism and oral delivery position the J&J drug as a convenient alternative to injectable therapies like Skyrizi, potentially intensifying competition in the IL-23 market.
Icotyde is being evaluated in separate late-stage studies for psoriatic arthritis, Crohn’s disease (CD) and ulcerative colitis (UC) — key indications in which Skyrizi has already established a strong market presence. While this J&J drug is clearly being positioned as a direct competitor to Skyrizi, its near-term impact is likely to be limited, given Skyrizi’s dominant market position. Over the longer term, Icotyde’s oral profile and expanding indications could enable it to gradually capture market share, potentially weighing on AbbVie’s growth trajectory.
Another pharma giant expanding its presence in the immunology space is Eli Lilly (LLY - Free Report) , following the FDA approval of Omvoh for the UC indication in late 2023. Omvoh marked Eli Lilly’s first immunology drug approved in the United States for a type of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), playing a key role in expanding its portfolio in this therapeutic area. The LLY drug received FDA approval for the CD indication last year.
ABBV’s Price Performance, Valuation and Estimates
Shares of AbbVie have underperformed the industry year to date, as seen in the chart below.
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research
From a valuation standpoint, AbbVie is at a discount to the industry. Based on the price/earnings (P/E) ratio, the company’s shares currently trade at 13.93 times forward earnings, lower than its industry’s average of 17.25.
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research
Over the past 30 days, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for 2026 EPS has increased from $14.46 to $14.54, while that for 2027 has risen from $16.15 to $16.24.
View the Zacks #1 Rank List
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ABBV Stock Slides 5%: Is J&J's Icotyde a Threat to Skyrizi?
Key Takeaways
Shares of AbbVie (ABBV - Free Report) fell 5.2% on Wednesday, wiping out more than $20 billion in market value. This selloff comes as investors grow wary of Johnson & Johnson’s (JNJ - Free Report) newly approved immunology therapy, Icotyde, which could emerge as a competitive threat to Skyrizi, a key growth driver for AbbVie.
J&J announced yesterday that the FDA approved Icotyde, an interleukin-23 (IL-23) receptor antagonist, for the treatment of moderate-to-severe plaque psoriasis in patients aged 12 years and above who weigh at least 40 kg and are candidates for systemic therapy or phototherapy. J&J noted that this approval marks a significant milestone, making Icotyde the first targeted oral peptide designed to precisely block the IL-23 receptor.
Skyrizi has been a key pillar of AbbVie’s growth strategy following Humira’s loss of exclusivity, generating multi-billion-dollar annual sales and delivering strong double-digit growth since launch. The drug is currently the company’s top-selling medication, with sales rising 50% year over year to $17.6 billion in 2025. Management expects Skyrizi to generate approximately $21.5 billion in sales this year.
While Skyrizi’s efficacy and dosing regimen might offer advantages, Icotyde’s approval in the immunology space poses a threat to AbbVie. The differentiated mechanism and oral delivery position the J&J drug as a convenient alternative to injectable therapies like Skyrizi, potentially intensifying competition in the IL-23 market.
Icotyde is being evaluated in separate late-stage studies for psoriatic arthritis, Crohn’s disease (CD) and ulcerative colitis (UC) — key indications in which Skyrizi has already established a strong market presence. While this J&J drug is clearly being positioned as a direct competitor to Skyrizi, its near-term impact is likely to be limited, given Skyrizi’s dominant market position. Over the longer term, Icotyde’s oral profile and expanding indications could enable it to gradually capture market share, potentially weighing on AbbVie’s growth trajectory.
Another pharma giant expanding its presence in the immunology space is Eli Lilly (LLY - Free Report) , following the FDA approval of Omvoh for the UC indication in late 2023. Omvoh marked Eli Lilly’s first immunology drug approved in the United States for a type of inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), playing a key role in expanding its portfolio in this therapeutic area. The LLY drug received FDA approval for the CD indication last year.
ABBV’s Price Performance, Valuation and Estimates
Shares of AbbVie have underperformed the industry year to date, as seen in the chart below.
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research
From a valuation standpoint, AbbVie is at a discount to the industry. Based on the price/earnings (P/E) ratio, the company’s shares currently trade at 13.93 times forward earnings, lower than its industry’s average of 17.25.
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research
Over the past 30 days, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for 2026 EPS has increased from $14.46 to $14.54, while that for 2027 has risen from $16.15 to $16.24.
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research
AbbVie currently carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.