The Passion for Late-Stage Deals (Second of a two-part series)

Late-stage compounds are more expensive than ever; deals are now pushing the boundaries of economic viability. Drug companies are therefore looking for ways to cost-effectively expand their late-stage pipelines and expand their criteria for in-licensing candidates. In order to keep valuable development-stage products moving through its pipeline, rather than stopping some in favor of others it judges to be superior, Lilly has been trying to out-license assets to companies with spare development capacity. Lilly can buy the products back later if they prove worthwhile.Meanwhile, Abbott's late-stage dealmaking, while hardly inexpensive, aims to increase the set of choices, lower the cost, and increase the profitability of in-licensing by focusing on franchise markets.