Pharma BD Deal Intelligence

Incyte Corporation / MacroGenics, Inc.

2017 · Licensing/Option · $900M · Complete

CALLED IT — OFF BY 6

Incyte never acquired MacroGenics — this was a $150M upfront licensing deal for one PD-1 asset (retifanlimab/Zynyz), which took over 5 years to reach first approval and remains a modest, sub-blockbuster product; MacroGenics stayed fully independent throughout.

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The coverage arc

Oct 25, 2017 Endpoints News Neutral

Incyte secured a late-mover PD-1 in MGA012 from MacroGenics, betting that niche-tumor positioning and combination strategies with its IDO and JAK pipeline…

Jul 23, 2021 FierceBiotech Bearish

FDA issued a CRL for retifanlimab in anal cancer following a negative advisory panel that questioned the single-arm Phase 2 data as insufficient — a major…

May 15, 2025 OncLive Bullish

FDA approved Zynyz (retifanlimab-dlwr) plus platinum chemotherapy as the first frontline regimen for advanced SCAC based on Phase 3 POD1UM-303 data showing…

Source summaries from our enrichment pipeline; follow links for originals.

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Incyte licensed worldwide rights to develop and commercialize MGA012, MacroGenics' anti-PD-1 monoclonal antibody, in all indications. MacroGenics received $150M upfront plus eligibility for up to $420M in development/regulatory milestones and up to $330M in commercial milestones (~$900M total) plus tiered 15-24% royalties on net sales. MacroGenics retained rights to use MGA012 in combination with its proprietary pipeline.

Did it work? Outcome assessment

Incyte never acquired MacroGenics — this was a $150M upfront licensing deal for one PD-1 asset (retifanlimab/Zynyz), which took over 5 years to reach first approval and remains a modest, sub-blockbuster product; MacroGenics stayed fully independent throughout.

Strategic verdict
Partially Achieved
Financial impact
Dilutive
Pipeline outcome
Mixed

Key facts

Related deals — scored

DealYearValueOutcome
Incyte Corporation / MacroGenics, Inc. (this deal)2017$900M69
Incyte Corporation / Vega Therapeutics, Inc.2026$2.0B68
Incyte Corporation / Merus N.V.2017$3.0B35
Incyte Corporation / Genesis Molecular AI, Inc.2026$1.0B
Incyte Corporation / Escient Pharmaceuticals Inc.2024$750M
Incyte Corporation / Calithera Biosciences, Inc.2017$803M
Amgen Inc. / Micromet Inc.2012$1.2B88

Compare all 7 side-by-side →

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