A global pandemic has done nothing to crimp M&A premiums, with acquirers forced to swallow ever higher price tags.
A few multi-billion-dollar deals got done in the third quarter, but 2020’s acquisition scene still looks anaemic.
Second-quarter deal values plummeted as Covid-19 spread and the prices of target companies spiralled.
The number of novel, pivotal-stage projects in big pharma pipelines has plunged – just as Covid-19 put the brakes on deal making.
Drug makers struck few M&A deals in the first quarter, but activity did not dry up, suggesting that the real impact of coronavirus has yet to play out.
Drug developers have directed almost half of their dealmaking firepower at oncology projects over the past five years, with cardiovascular a distant second.
Robotic surgery is one of the bright spots in an otherwise tricky year for medtechs seeking a buyer.
The number of biopharma buyouts overall last year did not rise, though more deals were struck in the “sweet spot”, and premiums saw a healthy rise.