Rival pharma companies battle over $5 billion obesity drug deal

Danish pharmaceutical giant Novo Nordisk has disrupted Pfizer’s $5 billion acquisition of Metsera Inc., a promising obesity treatment startup, with a $6.5 billion bid that could rise to $9 billion if targets are met.

Metsera's shares surged over 25% following the announcement, putting Pfizer in a tight position to either counter or walk away within the next four business days, Bloomberg writes. 

“They need to be very strategic in the next move,” said Evan Seigerman, an analyst at BMO Capital Markets. “The margin for error is increasingly shrinking. This is like a chess game right now.”

Novo’s offer is 11% higher than Pfizer’s, putting Metsera's board in a difficult spot. If Pfizer doesn’t make a better offer, Metsera could walk away from its existing deal.

Mizuho health-care specialist Jared Holz suggested Pfizer may not back down easily.

“They’ve already put $5 billion on the line, what’s another billion?” he said. “If it turns into a bidding war, well, then it’s possible they walk away.”

Novo and Eli Lilly & Co. are the main players in the rapidly expanding market for weight-loss drugs. As Pfizer struggles to break into this field, it faces stiff competition from both rivals and the market's shifting dynamics. Pfizer’s stock has dropped nearly 60% from its pandemic-era highs, and CEO Albert Bourla is looking to replenish the company’s drug pipeline.

But the bidding war may get political. Pfizer has called Novo’s bid “reckless” and an antitrust violation aimed at eliminating competition.

“Novo was violating American law in the way it was structuring the new proposal,” Pfizer said, appealing to regulators and invoking its ties with the Trump administration.

Bloomberg Intelligence analyst Michael Shah noted that Pfizer’s options are limited. It could wait to see if Novo’s bid is blocked on regulatory grounds, raise its offer, or target another obesity biotech like Viking Therapeutics.

“Ultimately, if Pfizer wants to get into the obesity game, they need to do a deal,” Shah said.

Novo Nordisk, meanwhile, is undergoing a major internal shift as it attempts to reassert itself in the obesity market. The company recently faced boardroom upheaval, with CEO Maziar Mike Doustdar now leading efforts to streamline operations. Novo’s $6.5 billion bid is structured unusually, offering investors most of the money upfront, which may speed up the deal’s approval—but could also lead to regulatory scrutiny.

David O’Hara, managing director at MKI Global Partners, warned that Novo’s position in the obesity market could raise antitrust concerns. “There has to be some risk that Pfizer will now simply be lobbying the Trump admin to have Trump tweet against Novo’s competing bid and shoot this dead,” he said.

By Sabina Mammadli