EL7.AI
Mergers & AcquisitionsMedium•23 October 2026•
4 min read

Gilead Offers $1.275 Billion for PepStar’s Experimental Drug Program

Key Facts

1The upfront cash consideration is $1.275 billion, payable at closing and subject to customary adjustments.
2Gilead expects the deal to reduce earnings per share by about $0.79 to $0.83 in the fourth quarter of 2026.
3HCXT-2001 remains in Phase 1 clinical trials.
4The company expects to complete the deal in the fourth quarter of 2026, subject to customary closing conditions.

Gilead Sciences said it had entered into a definitive agreement to acquire PepStar Therapeutics’ oral IL-23R inhibitor program, including its lead candidate HCXT-2001, in a deal valued at $1.275 billion in upfront cash. The company said the consideration is subject to customary adjustments and payable at closing. The agreement grants Gilead global rights to the program, but the transfer of those rights is tied to completion of the deal. The company expects to close in the fourth quarter of 2026, subject to customary closing conditions. The announcement comes as HCXT-2001 remains in early clinical development.

HCXT-2001 is an experimental oral drug candidate in the class of macrocyclic peptides that inhibit IL-23R. It is currently in Phase 1 clinical trials. Gilead describes the compound as having an extended half-life and sees it as a potentially different approach to inhibiting the IL-23 pathway with an oral drug. The program targets a pathway the company says is linked to immune-mediated inflammatory diseases, including inflammatory bowel disease, with potential applications in psoriasis. The company said, however, that HCXT-2001’s safety and efficacy have not yet been established and that it has not been approved by any regulatory authority.

Financially, Gilead expects the deal to reduce earnings per share under both GAAP and non-GAAP measures by about $0.79 to $0.83 in the fourth quarter of 2026. The company tied this impact to the same period in which it is targeting completion of the deal. The announced consideration is an upfront cash payment of $1.275 billion, due at closing and subject to customary adjustments. The available facts in the announcement did not include an estimate of the program’s future contribution to revenue or earnings. The disclosed financial figures therefore focus on the cash consideration and the expected impact of the deal on earnings per share.

Gilead plans to study HCXT-2001 as a treatment for patients with inflammatory bowel disease, either on its own or in a combination regimen. The company’s chief medical officer said Gilead sees potential to use it “alone or in combination, including with emvistegrast, as a once-daily oral treatment for people with inflammatory bowel disease.” This outlook places the program within the company’s efforts to build oral treatment options in the field. On October 19, 2026, Gilead reported positive results from the Phase 2 SWIFT study of emvistegrast, a potential once-daily oral treatment for ulcerative colitis. At Week 12, 66%, or 39 of 59 participants, achieved a clinical response with the 200 mg dose, compared with 37%, or 22 of 60 participants, with placebo.

Gilead said it plans to begin a Phase 3 study of emvistegrast as a monotherapy in 2027 and sees it as a potential foundation for future treatment combinations. This provides context for the combination option the company mentioned when discussing HCXT-2001, without meaning that the proposed combination has been tested in a clinical trial. The deal continues to expand Gilead’s inflammation portfolio; in June, the company completed its acquisition of Ouro Medicines in partnership with Lakefront, adding the experimental candidate gamgertamig to its portfolio. At the end of 2025, Gilead had 53 clinical-stage programs across HIV, oncology and inflammation. In its business, fourth-quarter 2025 revenue rose 5% to $7.9 billion compared with the same period in 2024, while product sales excluding Veklury increased 4% to $28 billion for the year.

Gilead appointed Lazard as its exclusive financial adviser on the deal, while Centerview Partners LLC is serving in the same role for PepStar. The announcement identifies the advisers for both parties, along with the cash consideration and expected closing conditions. The next step is to complete the deal in the fourth quarter of 2026 after satisfying customary closing conditions. At completion, global rights to the IL-23R inhibitor program will transfer to Gilead under the agreement. HCXT-2001 will remain an experimental candidate until the results of its development and assessments of its safety and efficacy become clear.