Rumors of biggest pharma merger ever drop amid Q2 earnings, contentious FDA adcomms

News FDA Rumors of biggest pharma merger ever drop amid Q2 earnings, contentious FDA adcomms August 5, 2026 | 1 min read | Jef Akst, Heather McKenzie, Annalee Armstrong, Gabrielle Masson Twitter LinkedIn Facebook Email Print The industry has been abuzz since the weekend when talks of a potential mega-merger between Bristol Myers Squibb and AstraZeneca were reported. Meanwhile, Pfizer, Merck and others release second quarter earnings, with some disclosing pipeline discontinuations and cost-cutting measures. Finally, all eyes turn to the FDA in the wake of heated advisory committee meetings for Capricor Therapeutics and Replimune.

> Listen on Spotify> Listen on Apple Products> Listen on Amazon Music> Listen on iHeart> Watch on YouTubeBristol Myers Squibb and AstraZeneca, both massive pharma companies with market caps topping $130 billion, are reportedly in talks to merge. If the deal goes through, which analysts think is unlikely due to anticompetitive regulations, it would be the largest in the industry’s history. Both pharmas are facing looming patent cliffs, but analysts think BMS has more to gain from the rumored transaction than AstraZeneca does, with the blood thinner Eliquis and immunotherapy Opdivo—which together accounted for half of BMS’ 2025 global sales—both set to lose exclusivity in the next few years.In other news, second quarter earnings continue to roll out.

Pfizer reported another $2.5 billion in cost reductions through 2029 as the company continues to restructure in the face of declining COVID revenues. CEO Albert Bourla also had some pretty pointed comments for analysts on the earnings call Tuesday, defending the pharma’s $7 billion in available cash for deals. Merck, meanwhile, reported good news and bad news for its anti-TL1A antibody tulisokibart, which it acquired in the nearly $11 billion buyout of Prometheus Biosciences in 2023.BioSpace has also reported on earnings from BMS, AbbVie, Biogen, Vertex, Moderna and BioNTech, and stay tuned for weight loss juggernauts Novo Nordisk and Eli Lilly coming out on Wednesday morning.Over at the FDA, advisory committee meetings for Capricor Therapeutics and Replimune certainly put on a show last week.

The meeting for Capricor’s Duchenne muscular dystrophy cardiomyopathy cell therapy deramiocel showcased confusion between Capricor and the FDA about which statistical analysis plan and endpoints the agency should have focused on—and even the indication they were supposed to be targeting. The committee ultimately voted 9-3 against recommending deramiocel’s approval. CEO Linda Marbán told BioSpace she wouldn’t rule out legal action if the company and the agency can’t find a path forward.

Meanwhile, Replimune fared better, with advisors voting 10-3 in support of approving RP1 for advanced melanoma. The PDUFA date for RP1 was August 2. Twitter LinkedIn Facebook Email Print Podcasts The Weekly Regulatory FDA Cancer Duchenne muscular dystrophy Rare diseases Merck & Co.

Capricor Therapeutics Pfizer AstraZeneca Bristol Myers Squibb Company Jef Akst Jef Akst is managing editor of BioSpace. You can reach her at jef.akst@biospace.com. Follow her on LinkedIn and Twitter @JefAkst.

Heather McKenzie Heather McKenzie is senior editor at BioSpace. You can reach her at heather.mckenzie@biospace.com. Also follow her on LinkedIn.

Annalee Armstrong Annalee Armstrong is senior editor at BioSpace. You can reach her at annalee.armstrong@biospace.com. Follow her on LinkedIn.

Gabrielle Masson Gabrielle is a senior editor at BioSpace. You can reach her at gabrielle.masson@biospace.com.