Catalent, Inc. (CTLT)

Catalent, Inc. was one of the largest contract development and manufacturing organizations serving the pharmaceutical, biotech and consumer health industries. It developed drug formulations and manufactured products for other companies, including softgel capsules, oral tablets, injectable drugs, biologics, gene therapies and clinical trial supplies, operating dozens of plants across North America, Europe and Asia. Its customers ranged from the largest global drug makers to small biotech companies that did not have their own production plants, and it also supplied consumer health brands.

The business traces back to the pharmaceutical services unit of Cardinal Health, which the private equity firm Blackstone bought in 2007 and renamed Catalent Pharma Solutions. Catalent went public on the New York Stock Exchange in July 2014 under the ticker CTLT and later joined the S&P 500. After the IPO, Catalent grew through a long series of acquisitions, building capacity in biologics, cell and gene therapy and specialized dosage forms to meet rising outsourcing demand.

Demand surged during the COVID-19 pandemic, when Catalent filled and finished vaccines for several developers and expanded its gene therapy capacity. After the pandemic, the company faced manufacturing quality problems, slower demand and accounting adjustments, which led to management changes and pressure from activist investors in 2023. The company also lowered its financial guidance several times and delayed some regulatory filings, and its share price fell well below its pandemic-era peak.

In February 2024 Catalent agreed to be acquired by Novo Holdings, the controlling shareholder of Novo Nordisk, in an all-cash deal valued at about $16.5 billion including debt. After a lengthy antitrust review, the transaction closed on December 18, 2024 at $63.50 per share, and the shares were delisted from the NYSE. Shareholders had approved the merger in May 2024, and the remaining time was spent on reviews by competition authorities in the United States and Europe.

As part of the plan, Novo Nordisk bought three Catalent fill-finish sites from Novo Holdings, located in Anagni, Italy, Bloomington, Indiana and Brussels, Belgium, to expand production of its diabetes and obesity drugs. The rest of Catalent continues to operate as a privately held contract manufacturer. The deal drew attention from regulators and competitors because it gave a drug maker's parent company control of one of the industry's major outside suppliers.