Street View: Gilead's Arcellx buyout a long-term bet on cancer cell therapy

Gilead Sciences GILD.O agreed to pay as much as $7.8 billion to acquire partner Arcellx in its largest deal since 2020 as it looks to strengthen its lineup of cancer treatments with a promising cell therapy candidate, anito-cel.

ALL EYES ON ANITO-CEL

Citi ("buy," PT: $156) says the deal makes strong strategic sense, given the high probability of anito-cel approval in multiple myeloma by the end of 2026, potentially earlier, and what it sees as a differentiated clinical profile versus J&J's JNJ.N Carvykti

TD Cowen ("buy," PT: $160) says the valuation looks reasonable, makes sense for both parties and believes the transaction should add to earnings from 2028 onwards; also sees high likelihood of anito-cel approval in December followed by an early-2027 launch

Mizuho ("outperform," PT: $170) says anito-cel could potentially become a market leader in multiple myeloma over time, citing a cleaner safety profile than Carvykti and efficacy that looks comparable or better in cross-trial comparisons

Morningstar (fair value: $131) says it now models about $4 billion in annual anito-cel sales by year 10, but adds competition could limit expansion into earlier use