Johnson & Johnson announced plans to acquire Intra-Cellular Therapies for $14.6 billion, marking its largest transaction in more than two years. The deal strengthens J&J’s position in the market for brain disease treatments and supports its pharmaceutical business following the spinoff of its consumer health unit in 2023. Intra-Cellular’s flagship product, Caplyta, is an oral therapy approved in the U.S. for schizophrenia and bipolar disorder-related depressive episodes. The drug generated $481.3 million in revenue during the first nine months of 2024, with analysts predicting sales to exceed $1 billion in 2025. J&J also gains access to Intra-Cellular’s pipeline of experimental drugs, further bolstering its neurological drug offerings.
The company plans to finance the acquisition through cash and debt and expects to close the deal by the end of 2025, accounting for potential antitrust scrutiny under the new administration. While analysts view the acquisition as a strategic fit for J&J’s neurological drug portfolio, concerns over overlapping products with J&J’s existing treatments have been raised. J&J’s schizophrenia drug, paliperidone, generated $3.16 billion in sales in the first nine months of 2024. Despite potential challenges, the acquisition aligns with J&J’s ongoing strategy of expanding its pharmaceutical division through targeted transactions.
