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Issuer Ranking: Global Pharmaceutical Companies: Strongest To Weakest

In this report, S&P Global Ratings lists its universe of 70 rated global pharmaceutical companies from strongest to weakest. We rank the companies by rating, then by outlook, business risk profile, financial risk profile, and liquidity assessment. We then list companies in alphabetical order if they are not distinguished by these factors.

In line with our corporate rating methodology, the final rating may differ from the (preliminary) anchor score where we have applied one or more modifiers or where government, group, or rating-above-the-sovereign considerations apply. These arise about 25% of the time but only rarely influence the rating by more than one notch. We've noted the anchor and active modifiers of each company for informational purposes only.

For our sector outlook and related reports, please refer to the Related Research section at the end of this article.

The table and charts in this publication provide an overview of the 70 entities we rate in the pharmaceutical industry. This includes companies focusing on branded drugs (32; representing about 46% of the companies), generic drugs (23; 33%), contract development and manufacturing (16;23%), and animal health (4; 6%).

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Table 1

List of global pharmaceutical companies: Strongest to weakest
Company Sub-Sector Corporate Rating Outlook Business Risk Profile Financial Risk Profile Liquidity Anchor SACP Modifier

Johnson & Johnson

Branded AAA Negative Excellent Minimal Strong (0) aaa aaa

Roche Holding AG

Branded AA Stable Excellent Minimal Strong (0) aa+ aa FP (-1)

Sanofi

Branded AA Stable Excellent Modest Strong (0) aa aa

Novartis AG

Branded AA- Stable Excellent Modest Strong (0) aa aa- FP (-1)

Novo Nordisk A/S

Branded AA- Stable Strong Minimal Strong (0) aa- aa-

AstraZeneca PLC

Branded A+ Stable Excellent Modest Adequate (0) aa a+ FP (-1), CRA (-1)

Eli Lilly & Co.

Branded A+ Stable Strong Modest Strong (0) a+ a+

Merck & Co. Inc.

Branded A+ Stable Strong Modest Strong (0) a+ a+

GSK PLC

Branded A Stable Excellent Intermediate Strong (0) a a

Pfizer Inc.

Branded A Stable Excellent Intermediate Strong (0) a a

Merck KGaA

Branded A Stable Strong Modest Strong (0) a+ a FP (-2), Diversification (+1)

Bristol-Myers Squibb Co.

Branded A Stable Strong Intermediate Strong (0) a- a CRA (+1)

CSL Ltd.

Branded A- Stable Strong Modest Strong (0) a a- CRA (-1)

AbbVie Inc.

Branded A- Stable Strong Intermediate Adequate (0) a- a-

Gilead Sciences Inc.

Branded BBB+ Positive Satisfactory Modest Strong (0) bbb+ bbb+

Takeda Pharmaceutical Co. Ltd.

Branded BBB+ Stable Strong Intermediate Strong (0) bbb+ bbb+

Lonza Group AG

CDMO BBB+ Stable Strong Intermediate Adequate (0) bbb+ bbb+

Regeneron Pharmaceuticals Inc.

Branded BBB+ Stable Satisfactory Minimal Strong (0) a- bbb+ CRA (-1)

Biogen Inc.

Branded BBB+ Stable Satisfactory Modest Strong (0) bbb+ bbb+

Amgen Inc.

Branded BBB+ Negative Strong Significant Strong (0) bbb bbb+ CRA (+1)

Bayer AG

Branded BBB Stable Strong Significant Adequate (0) bbb bbb

Zoetis Inc.

Animal Health BBB Stable Satisfactory Modest Strong (0) bbb+ bbb FP (-1)

Sandoz Group AG

Generic BBB Stable Satisfactory Intermediate Adequate (0) bbb bbb

Royalty Pharma plc

Branded BBB- Stable Satisfactory Significant Adequate (0) bbb- bbb-

Hikma Pharmaceuticals PLC

Generic BBB- Stable Fair Minimal Adequate (0) bbb bbb- FP (-1)

H. Lundbeck A/S

Branded BBB- Stable Fair Modest Strong (0) bbb- bbb-

Viatris Inc.

Generic BBB- Negative Satisfactory Significant Strong (0) bbb- bbb-

Huvepharma EOOD

Animal Health BB+ Stable Fair Intermediate Adequate (0) bb+ bb+

Hypera S.A.

Generic BB+ Stable Fair Intermediate Adequate (0) bb+ bb+

Glenmark Pharmaceuticals Ltd.

Generic BB+ Stable Weak Modest Adequate (0) bb+ bb+

Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd.

Generic BB Positive Satisfactory Aggressive Adequate (0) bb bb

Jazz Pharmaceuticals plc

Branded BB Stable Fair Intermediate Adequate (0) bb+ bb FP (-1)

Biocon Biologics Ltd.

Generic BB Stable Fair Aggressive Adequate (0) bb- bb FP (+1)

Alkermes PLC

Branded BB Stable Weak Intermediate Adequate (0) bb bb

Almirall S.A.

Branded BB Stable Weak Intermediate Adequate (0) bb bb

Organon & Co.

Generic BB Negative Fair Significant Adequate (0) bb bb

Elanco Animal Health Inc.

Animal Health BB- Stable Satisfactory Aggressive Adequate (0) bb bb- CRA (-1)

Mallinckrodt plc

Generic BB- Stable Weak Intermediate Adequate (0) bb bb- CRA (-1)

ANI Pharmaceuticals Inc.

Generic BB- Stable Weak Significant Adequate (0) bb- bb-

Grunenthal Pharma GmbH & Co. KG

Generic BB- Stable Weak Significant Adequate (0) bb- bb-

Grifols S.A.

Branded B+ Stable Satisfactory Highly Leveraged Adequate (0) b+ b+

Aenova Holding GmbH

CDMO B+ Stable Weak Aggressive Adequate (0) b+ b+

Amneal Pharmaceuticals Inc.

Generic B+ Stable Weak Aggressive Adequate (0) b+ b+

Endo Inc.

Branded B+ Stable Weak Aggressive Adequate (0) b+ b+

Stamina Bidco B.V.

CDMO B+ Stable Weak Aggressive Adequate (0) b+ b+

Catalent Inc.

CDMO B+ Negative Fair Highly Leveraged Adequate (0) b b+ CRA (+1)

Financiere Top Mendel SAS

Animal Health B Stable Satisfactory Highly Leveraged Adequate (0) b+ b CRA (-1)

AI Sirona (Luxembourg) Acquisition S.a.r.l.

Generic B Stable Fair Highly Leveraged Adequate (0) b b

CHEPLAPHARM Arzneimittel GmbH

Generic B Stable Fair Highly Leveraged Adequate (0) b b

Kedrion SpA

Branded B Stable Fair Highly Leveraged Adequate (0) b b

Nidda BondCo GmbH

Generic B Stable Fair Highly Leveraged Adequate (0) b b

Rossini Acquisition S.a.r.l.

Generic B Stable Fair Highly Leveraged Adequate (0) b b

Azurity Pharmaceuticals Inc.

Branded B Stable Weak Highly Leveraged Adequate (0) b b

Bowtie German Bidco Gmbh

CDMO B Stable Weak Highly Leveraged Adequate (0) b b

Fabbrica Italiana Sintetici SpA

CDMO B Stable Weak Highly Leveraged Adequate (0) b b

Neopharmed Gentili SpA

Generic B Stable Weak Highly Leveraged Adequate (0) b b

Neuraxpharm Holdco S.a.r.l.

Generic B Stable Weak Highly Leveraged Adequate (0) b b

Padagis LLC

Generic B Stable Weak Highly Leveraged Adequate (0) b b

Pharmanovia Bidco Ltd.

Generic B Stable Weak Highly Leveraged Adequate (0) b b

Stars UK Bidco Ltd. (Theramex)

Branded B Stable Weak Highly Leveraged Adequate (0) b b

Roar BidCo AB

CDMO B- Stable Fair Highly Leveraged Adequate (0) b b- CRA (-1)

ADVANZ PHARMA Holdco Ltd.

Generic B- Stable Weak Highly Leveraged Adequate (0) b b- CRA (-1)

Cambrex Corp.

CDMO B- Stable Weak Highly Leveraged Adequate (0) b- b-

Curium Midco S.a.r.l.

CDMO B- Stable Weak Highly Leveraged Adequate (0) b- b-

Emergent BioSolutions Inc.

Branded B- Stable Weak Highly Leveraged Adequate (0) b- b-

Financiere Verdi I SAS

Generic B- Stable Weak Highly Leveraged Adequate (0) b- b-

Kepler Spa

CDMO B- Stable Weak Highly Leveraged Adequate (0) b- b-

Alvogen Pharma US Inc.

Generic B- WatchNeg Vulnerable Highly Leveraged Weak (0) b- b-

Bausch Health Cos. Inc.

Branded CCC+ Negative N.A N.A N.A N.A N.A

Curia Global Inc.

CDMO CCC+ Negative N.A N.A N.A N.A N.A
CDMO--Contract development and manufacturing organizations. FP--Financial policy modifier. CRA--Comparable ratings analysis modifier. SACP--Stand-alone credit profile. N.A.--Not available. Note: Corporate Rating is Foreign Currency Long Term Rating. Source: S&PGlobal Ratings.

Distribution Of Ratings

We rate 27 entities (39%) as investment grade ('BBB-' and above) and 43 entities (61%) as speculative-grade ('BB+' and below). About half (20) of the companies with speculative-grade ratings are also owned by financial sponsors, which tend to have relatively high levels of financial risk (generally consistent with S&P Global Ratings-adjusted leverage above 5x).

Chart 1

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Outlook And CreditWatch Distribution

Overall, about 86% of rating outlooks are stable, 11% are negative (including CreditWatch placements), and 3% are positive. Chart 2 below, shows this distribution across the subsectors of the industry.

Chart 2

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Utilization Of Rating Modifiers

About 26% of the ratings incorporate one or more modifiers. Most often, this is the comparative rating analysis that we use for credit considerations that we have not already factored into the business risk and financial risk. In most of the remaining cases it's the use of our financial policy modifier, which incorporates our view of a company's financial risks beyond our base-case assumptions for cash flow and leverage. This could, for example, capture the risks related to a company's appetite for large-scale, debt-financed mergers and acquisitions for which the amount and timing cannot be predicted. Finally, the diversification modifier is applied to certain conglomerates, with a level of diversity not captured in our assessment of business risk.

Distribution Of Liquidity Scores

We consider most of our rated pharmaceutical issuers to have liquidity that is adequate or better. This reflects the sector's good access to debt markets. Typically, the amount of cash that pharmaceutical companies hold, combined with their cash generation and liquidity resources, will cover the uses of cash to which they have committed over the next 12 months by 1.2x or more. Moreover about 75% (20 of 27) of companies with ratings that are investment-grade have liquidity we categorize as 'Strong'. This reflects a ratio of sources to uses exceeding 1.5x, along with other supporting quantitative and qualitative considerations.

The ratings and scores in this document are as of Jan. 7, 2025.

Related Criteria

Related Research

This report does not constitute a rating action.

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