GSK to acquire Nuvalent for $10.6 billion

Key highlights
  • GSK will acquire Nuvalent for $10.6 billion, offering $124 per share in cash (40% premium to the last close).
  • Zidesamtinib (NVL‑520, ROS1) and neladalkib (NVL‑655, ALK) are late‑stage NSCLC inhibitors with FDA target decision dates of 18 Sep 2026 and 27 Nov 2026.
  • NVL‑330 is a HER2 inhibitor in phase I; the deal also transfers Nuvalent’s preclinical programmes and discovery platform.
  • GSK expects the deal to be accretive to sales and core operating profit in 2027 and to core EPS in 2029; funding will be primarily new/existing debt plus cash.

Deal terms

GSK will acquire Nuvalent for $10.6 billion (£8.0bn), offering $124 per share in cash via a tender offer; net of cash acquired the aggregate investment is estimated at $9.4bn. Promptly after the tender, GSK expects to acquire any remaining shares through a second‑step merger at the same price. The transaction will be funded primarily from new and existing debt facilities plus cash, and GSK will assume Nuvalent’s low‑single‑digit royalty obligations to Royalty Pharma and Deerfield.

Assets and clinical status

The acquisition includes three lung cancer assets: zidesamtinib (NVL‑520), a ROS1 inhibitor, and neladalkib (NVL‑655), an ALK inhibitor—both with FDA Breakthrough Therapy and Orphan Drug designations and target decision dates of 18 Sep 2026 and 27 Nov 2026—and NVL‑330, a HER2 inhibitor in phase I. Nuvalent’s preclinical portfolio and precision‑medicine capabilities are included.

Strategic rationale and financial impact

GSK frames the deal as entry and platform expansion in non‑small cell lung cancer, aiming to address efficacy and tolerability gaps and to pair the assets with its B7‑H3 ADC Ris‑Rez. There is no change to GSK’s 2026 guidance (7–9% core operating profit and core EPS growth). The acquisition is expected to contribute to revenue from 2027, be accretive to core operating profit in 2027 and to core EPS in 2029 (inclusive of synergies and reprioritisation), and to support the Group’s existing ambition for sales above £40bn by 2031.

Conditions and timing

The transaction is subject to customary closing conditions, including majority tender of Nuvalent Class A shares and clearance under the Hart‑Scott‑Rodino Act. Assuming a close in Q3 2026, GSK expects low single‑digit percentage dilution to core EPS for the current year, FY2027 and FY2028.

Source: GSK