Healthy Returns: What to expect from pharma at the JPM conference

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Next week, I'll beryllium attending the yearly JPMorgan Healthcare Conference – the largest gathering of biotech and pharma execs, investors and analysts successful the U.S.

The league often sets the code for the twelvemonth ahead, and volition connection an aboriginal pulse connected what the health-care manufacture could look similar successful 2026. Executives from companies ample and tiny are expected to rotation retired cardinal concern and cause pipeline updates, denote splashy M&A deals and connection their work connected manufacture sentiment much than a twelvemonth into Trump 2.0.

That backdrop looks antithetic than galore successful the manufacture feared earlier successful 2025. Several large drugmakers ended the twelvemonth with landmark cause pricing deals with President Donald Trump – and a reprieve from his planned sector-specific tariffs. As a result, cause pricing and different policies whitethorn not predominate enforcement conversations with investors for the archetypal clip successful years.

Wall Street volition apt zero successful connected pharma's different problem: A roughly $300 cardinal patent cliff by the extremity of the decade. Blockbuster drugs specified arsenic the humor thinner Eliquis from Bristol Myers Squibb and Pfizer, and Merck's top-selling crab immunotherapy Keytruda volition look contention from cheaper competitors successful the years ahead, and companies are racing to offset those drops successful revenue. 

For example, Bristol Myers Squibb has the highest vulnerability to the upcoming nonaccomplishment of exclusivity cycle, according to a enactment from JPMorgan analysts successful precocious December. But the institution has respective information readouts this twelvemonth that volition supply clarity connected its quality to turn aft 2028. 

Investors volition apt person questions astir the upcoming Alzheimer's psychosis trials – called the ADEPT programme – for Bristol Myers Squibb's Cobenfy, a medicine medicine approved successful precocious 2024 for treating adults with schizophrenia. JPMorgan analysts spot "a tenable probability of success" for those studies. 

For Merck, Keytruda's nonaccomplishment of exclusivity is looking progressively easier to manage. In September, a much convenient subcutaneous signifier of the cause won U.S. support (Keytruda is traditionally administered intravenously.) That caller signifier should support astir 20% to 30% of Merck's U.S. income of Keytruda. 

All eyes volition beryllium connected Merck's 2026 cause pipeline updates. That could see archetypal results from a signifier 3 proceedings connected a flu prevention merchandise from Cidara Therapeutics, which the institution acquired successful November. 

Merck whitethorn besides person much deals up its sleeve: The FT connected Thursday reported that the pharma institution is successful talks to bargain Revolution Medicines, a crab drugmaker with a marketplace headdress of much than $20 billion. 

Obesity volition besides stay a blistery taxable during the conference, arsenic Novo Nordisk and Eli Lilly rotation retired oregon hole to merchandise GLP-1 pills and different drugmakers contention to drawback up. 

I'm looking for immoderate further details from Novo Nordisk connected the motorboat of its Wegovy pill, which began to scope patients this week, and what the institution plans to absorption connected next. Eli Lilly volition besides interaction connected what to expect from its ain oral GLP-1 called orforglipron, which volition apt triumph Food and Drug Administration support successful the archetypal fractional of the year. 

Both companies volition besides apt look questions astir the evolving GLP-1 marketplace dynamics, including the direct-to-consumer transmission and Medicare sum for obesity drugs starting toward the mediate of the year. 

Names similar Amgen, AstraZeneca and Pfizer, which precocious acquired the obesity biotech Metsera, volition besides look questions astir their ambitions successful the value nonaccomplishment cause market. 

Be definite to support up with our sum passim the week! And delight halt by and accidental hullo if you spot maine connected the crushed successful San Francisco. 

Feel escaped to nonstop immoderate tips, suggestions, communicative ideas and information to Annika astatine a caller email: annika.constantino@versantmedia.com.