Johnson & Johnson's acquisition of Actelion in 2017 was the worst pharma deal of the past 10 years, according to Business Insider, which cited an analysis by SVB Leerink.
Here are the five worst pharma deals of the decade, according to the analysis:
1. Johnson & Johnson's $30 billion acquisition of Actelion in 2017
In 2018, J&J halted development of an experimental antibiotic it acquired in the deal. That same year, Actelion paid $360 million to the federal government to resolve allegations that it paid Medicare patients for taking some of its drugs.
2. Merck's $8.4 billion acquisition of Cubist in 2014
Merck acquired antibiotic drugmaker Cubist in December 2014, when many other pharmaceutical companies were fleeing the antibiotics space. In 2015, Merck lost patent protection for Cubicin, a key asset in the deal.
3. Alexion's $8.4 billion acquisition of Synageva in 2015
Alexion executives thought one of Synageva's rare disease drugs, Kanuma, had the potential to generate $1 billion in sales. The drug hasn't come close to that threshold. It generated $29 million in sales in 2017 and $92 million in 2018.
4. AbbVie's $5.8 billion acquisition of Stemcentrx in 2016
AbbVie ended work on Stemcentrx's lead cancer drug Rova-T in August after announcing it would take a $5.1 billion charge from the deal.
5. Gilead's $12 billion acquisition of Kite in 2017
Sales of Yescarta, Kite's gene therapy to treat cancer, have disappointed. The drug generated $264 million in sales in 2018.
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