Pfizer has agreed to acquire Metsera, a fast-growing biotech focused on weight-loss therapies, in a deal worth up to $10bn, concluding a high-stakes bidding and legal war with Ozempic-maker Novo Nordisk.
Under the all-cash agreement, Pfizer will pay $65.60 per share upfront and offer a contingent value right (CVR) of up to $20.65 per share, tied to the achievement of certain clinical milestones, Metsera announced on Friday.
The move marks the end of a week-long takeover battle that began in late October when Novo Nordisk made an unsolicited offer for Metsera, challenging Pfizer’s earlier bid from September.
However, Metsera ultimately opted for Pfizer’s revised offer following antitrust concerns raised by the US Federal Trade Commission (FTC) over Novo’s potential acquisition.
In a statement, Metsera said the FTC had recently cautioned that a deal with Novo could pose competition risks, prompting the company’s board to accept Pfizer’s proposal instead.
The story so far
The move follows a heated legal dispute between the two pharma giants.
Pfizer had originally agreed a $7.5bn deal with obesity biotech Metsera back in September 2025. Danish company Novo Nordisk then submitted a competing offer in October, valuing Metsera at up to $8.5bn.
After Novo's surprise offer, Pfizer filed a lawsuit against the company in Delaware’s Chancery Court, seeking a restraining order to prevent Metsera from engaging with the pharma giant.
Pfizer claimed that Novo’s unsolicited offer breached the existing merger agreement.
However, the court denied Pfizer’s request, ruling that there was no evidence Metsera had violated the terms of its contract.
Metsera then declared Novo's bid as "superior", triggering a two-business-day window for Pfizer to renegotiate with the biotech.
Pfizer opted to first file a second suit against Novo and Metsera, alleging that Metsera’s controlling shareholders conspired with Novo Nordisk, which was quickly denied in the Delaware court, before improving its bid to upwards of $10bn.
At the same time, Novo's deal came under fire from the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), which said the offer could violate federal antitrust law because of Novo's already dominant position selling obesity drugs.
So, despite the courtroom setback, Pfizer’s improved bid, which valued Metsera at up to $2.7bn more than its original offer, ultimately secured the deal.
The transaction is expected to close following a shareholder vote on Thursday.
What is Metsera?
Founded just three years ago, Metsera employs around 100 people and has rapidly built one of the most promising pipelines in metabolic disease, including the following:
- A monthly injectable weight-loss drug
- An oral formulation targeting obesity
- A novel amylin-based therapy with a differentiated mechanism of action.
The acquisition underscores Pfizer’s renewed push into the obesity market, following the setback of its in-house GLP-1 candidate, danuglipron, which was discontinued due to tolerability issues in 2024.
For Novo Nordisk, led by new CEO Maziar Mike Doustdar, the failed bid represents another hurdle as it faces increasing pressure from investors amid a 50% decline in its share price and intensifying competition from Eli Lilly’s Zepbound and Mounjaro franchises.
The deal signals a strategic shift for Pfizer, which is betting on external innovation to secure a foothold in the booming weight-loss market, a segment projected to exceed $100bn globally by the early 2030s.