Pfizer receives $1.875 billion after completing ViiV exit in March
Key Facts
Pfizer received $1.875 billion in cash after completing its exit from its 11.7% investment in ViiV Healthcare on March 31, 2026, according to a filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. GSK cited the deal again in results published on October 28, after the agreement was announced in January and completed months earlier. Under the arrangement, Shionogi’s economic interest in ViiV rose to 21.7%, while GSK retained a 78.3% stake. The change shifted ownership of the HIV medicines specialist to a structure led by GSK and shared with Shionogi, following Pfizer’s exit. GSK said when announcing the agreement that it "simplifies the shareholder structure" at ViiV.
GSK, Pfizer and Shionogi announced the agreement on January 20, 2026, under which Shionogi’s investment would replace Pfizer’s economic interest. To implement the deal, ViiV issued new shares to Shionogi for $2.125 billion, and Pfizer’s stake was canceled. Of the total consideration, Pfizer received $1.875 billion, while GSK received a special dividend of $0.250 billion. These figures distinguish the value of the share issuance from the amounts paid to each shareholder; Pfizer did not receive the full $2.125 billion consideration. After completion, Shionogi held 21.7% and GSK held 78.3%.
Pfizer confirmed in its filing that the exit was completed on March 31, during its second fiscal quarter of 2026, and that the consideration was paid in cash. The company recorded a net gain of $1.870 billion from the sale of its former investment in ViiV in the second quarter and first six months of the year. That accounting gain differs from the cash proceeds of $1.875 billion, despite the figures being close: the former is the gain reported by the company, while the latter is the amount it received when the sale closed. The filing includes the exit in Pfizer’s results for the period ended in the first half of the year. GSK’s reference to it in October came in a later results presentation, not as an announcement of a new deal or a transaction completed that month.
The deal was cited again as GSK’s third-quarter results showed continued growth in its HIV business. HIV drug sales at GSK and ViiV were about £2.1 billion in the third quarter of 2026, up 10%. For the full previous year, GSK’s HIV sales were about £7.687 billion in 2025, up 8% at actual exchange rates and 11% at constant exchange rates. Sales were £7.089 billion in 2024, up 13% from 2023. The figures show sales growth across the periods cited, with different rates of change, as Shionogi became ViiV’s largest economic shareholder after GSK.
Shionogi’s financial data show ViiV revenue rising from £5.619 billion in the fiscal year ended in December 2022 to £6.308 billion in 2023 and then £7.023 billion in 2024. But net profit after tax did not move in the same direction over the three years: it was £1.528 billion in 2022, rose to £2.034 billion in 2023 and then fell to £1.619 billion in 2024. The comparison shows revenue growth between 2022 and 2024 alongside fluctuations in annual profit. ViiV was founded in November 2009 by GSK and Pfizer, and Shionogi joined its shareholders in October 2012. GSK described it when announcing the deal as a global HIV specialist focused on developing treatment, care and prevention.
ViiV’s chairman said the company looked forward to continuing its collaboration with Shionogi on developing long-acting injectable HIV medicines and prevention, alongside simplifying its shareholder structure. At the group level, GSK maintained its 2026 outlook, expecting sales growth of between 3% and 5%, core operating profit growth of between 7% and 9%, and core earnings per share growth of between 7% and 9%, at constant exchange rates. Shionogi expected its ViiV investment to begin contributing to earnings in the fiscal year ending in March 2027. In its treatment development pipeline, GSK said the Phase III CUATRO registration study of a treatment administered every four months was proceeding as planned, with launch expected in 2028. The company also said early data for VH499 showed the potential for twice-yearly administration, with additional data expected later in 2026.