⚠ A Pipeline of 90 With a Record of Write-OffsModerate threat

AbbVie (ABBV) — threat to the moat

AbbVie wrote off $8.7 billion of intangible assets in 2023 and 2024, while its next replacement has to come from a pipeline that takes up to twelve years.

AbbVie's pipeline is large and its recent record of write-offs is too. Impairment of intangible assets was $4,229 million in 2023 and $4,476 million in 20241. The largest charges were on Imbruvica after its Medicare selection and on emraclidine after it failed in trials23.

Research and development expense ($M)7,675202312,79120249,0962025AbbVie Form 10-K FY2025; 2024 includes the $4.5bn emraclidine impairment
Research spending swings with write-offs.

A pipeline of about 90 programmes4 will always produce failures. The question is whether its successes are large enough to replace Skyrizi and Rinvoq, which together were about 42% of revenue in 20255.

Drug development from discovery through launch typically takes 8 to 12 years6, so the drugs that must replace Skyrizi after 2033 are already in development or being bought now.

Research spending itself has swung. Research and development expense was $7,675 million in 2023, $12,791 million in 2024 including the $4.5 billion emraclidine impairment, and $9,096 million in 20257. The swings are acquisitions and write-offs passing through, not changes in the underlying programme.

Approvals of drugs with multi-billion-dollar potential before 2030 are the evidence to wait for. Without them, the 2033 cliff will be met with purchases rather than products.

References
  1. ReportedImpairment of intangible assets was $4,229 million in 2023 and $4,476 million in 2024.
    AbbVie Form 10-K for fiscal 2025 - financial statements and notes: earnings, cash flow, balance sheet, acquisitions and contingent consideration. — FY2025 · publ. 20 February 2026 · source ↗
  2. ReportedThe largest charges were on Imbruvica after its Medicare selection and on emraclidine after it failed in trials.
    AbbVie Form 10-K for fiscal 2025 - Item 1A risk factors, patents and exclusivity, government pricing and legal proceedings. — FY2025 · publ. 20 February 2026 · source ↗
  3. ReportedThe largest charges were on Imbruvica after its Medicare selection and on emraclidine after it failed in trials.
    AbbVie Form 10-K for fiscal 2024 - product revenue for 2022-2024, product concentration, the CEO succession and the emraclidine impairment. — FY2024 · publ. February 2025 · source ↗
  4. ReportedA pipeline of about 90 programmes will always produce failures.
    AbbVie Form 10-K for fiscal 2025 - Item 1 business: products, customers, competition and research. — FY2025 · publ. 20 February 2026 · source ↗
  5. ReportedThe question is whether its successes are large enough to replace Skyrizi and Rinvoq, which together were about 42% of revenue in 2025.
    AbbVie Form 10-K for fiscal 2025 - Item 7 MD&A: net revenues by product and region, and rebates. — FY2025 · publ. 20 February 2026 · source ↗
  6. ReportedDrug development from discovery through launch typically takes 8 to 12 years, so the drugs that must replace Skyrizi after 2033 are already in development or being bought now.
    AbbVie Form 10-K for fiscal 2025 - Item 1A risk factors, patents and exclusivity, government pricing and legal proceedings. — FY2025 · publ. 20 February 2026 · source ↗
  7. ReportedResearch and development expense was $7,675 million in 2023, $12,791 million in 2024 including the $4.5 billion emraclidine impairment, and $9,096 million in 2025.
    AbbVie Form 10-K for fiscal 2025 - financial statements and notes: earnings, cash flow, balance sheet, acquisitions and contingent consideration. — FY2025 · publ. 20 February 2026 · source ↗
Sources
Generated September 25, 2026