What Catalent Pharma Solutions does

Catalent Pharma Solutions is a global Contract Development and Manufacturing Organization (CDMO) providing end-to-end drug development, delivery technologies, and manufacturing services across oral dose, biologics, cell and gene therapy, specialty formats, and consumer health. The company operates nearly 40 sites in North America, Europe, Asia Pacific, and Latin America, employing more than 10,000 scientists and technicians, and produces billions of doses and 50 billion capsules annually while launching over 100 new client products each year. Its technology stack rests on proprietary platforms including RP Scherer softgel encapsulation (1933 origin), Zydis orally disintegrating tablets (1982), OptiForm solubility screening, GPEx mammalian cell line engineering, SMARTag antibody-drug conjugates, UpTempo AAV manufacturing, and the OneBio integrated biologics suite.

Catalent's business model is project- and contract-based B2B services delivered through enterprise field sales and long-term strategic partnerships with pharmaceutical, biotechnology, and consumer health companies. Pricing is quote-based and not publicly disclosed, tied to project scope, volume, and contract terms, with revenue recognized across development fees, clinical supply services, and commercial manufacturing agreements. Customer relationships span from large pharma blockbusters to early-stage biotechs, with the consumer health division serving 21 of the top 25 global consumer healthcare companies via a 5,000+ product portfolio and a 500+ formulation Product Library.

The company traces its lineage to Robert Pauli Scherer's 1930 invention of the rotary die softgel process, evolved through decades of acquisitions (Cook Pharmica 2017, Juniper 2018, Paragon Bioservices 2019, MaSTherCell 2020, Bettera 2021, Metrics Contract Services 2022) into a multi-modality CDMO. In May 2024, Novo Holdings A/S agreed to acquire Catalent for $16.5 billion; the deal closed in December 2024, taking the company private and removing it from the S&P 500, followed by the sale of three Catalent plants to Novo Nordisk for approximately $11 billion to support GLP-1 obesity drug manufacturing. The restructuring, recent negative net income, and 2026 layoffs at the Bloomington, Indiana site indicate an ongoing post-acquisition transition.

Name

Catalent Pharma Solutions

Legal name

Catalent, Inc.

Website

https://catalent.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1930

Operating status

Acquired

Headcount range

5,001–10,000 employees

Short description

Catalent is a global CDMO providing end-to-end drug development, manufacturing, and delivery technology services across oral dose, biologics, cell/gene therapy, and consumer health. It serves pharma, biotech, and consumer health companies from nearly 40 sites, now under Novo Holdings ownership.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Pharmaceutical Contract Manufacturing

NAICS

Pharmaceutical and Medicine Manufacturing (3254), Biological Product (except Diagnostic) Manufacturing (325414)

SIC

Pharmaceutical Preparations (2834)

akta.pro primary industry

Drug Substance–Drug Product Integrated CDMO (HLAGABAG)

akta.pro secondary industries

Biologics (mAbs/Recombinant Proteins) CDMO (HLAGABAC), Cell Therapy CDMO (HLAGABAD), Small-Molecule Drug Product (Solid/Oral/Parenteral) CDMO (HLAGABAB), Small-Molecule API & Intermediates CDMO (HLAGABAA)

Keywords

• Contract drug manufacturing
• Pharmaceutical development services
• Biologics contract manufacturing
• Cell and gene therapy CDMO
• Oral dose formulation

Headquarters

HQ city

Bridgewater

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices26 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Supply Chain, Infrastructure, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Pharma Services CDMO: Contract development and manufacturing services for pharmaceutical and biotech companies including oral dose, biologics, specialty, and clinical supply services. Revenue generated through project-based contracts, long-term manufacturing agreements, and development fees.
2. Consumer Health / Self-Care: Development and manufacturing of OTC products, dietary supplements, and beauty products for consumer health brands. Includes proprietary technologies and product library formulations.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Catalent is a global Contract Development and Manufacturing Organization (CDMO) providing end-to-end drug development, advanced delivery technologies, and manufacturing services for pharmaceutical, biotech, and consumer health companies. Services span oral dose, biologics, cell and gene therapy, clinical supply, and consumer health/self-care products across nearly 40 global facilities.

Product overview

Catalent Pharma Solutions is a leading global Contract Development and Manufacturing Organization (CDMO) offering integrated end-to-end pharmaceutical services across oral dose, biologics, specialty, and clinical supply. The company operates nearly 40 global sites and provides a comprehensive portfolio of technology platforms including OptiForm® Solution Suite for formulation development, Zydis® for orally disintegrating tablets, RP Scherer Softgel Technology, GPEx® for cell line development, SMARTag® for antibody drug conjugates, and UpTempo™ for gene therapy AAV manufacturing. The company's services span from early-stage development through commercial manufacturing, supporting oral, biologic, cell therapy, gene therapy, inhalation, and consumer health products. Catalent's product portfolio includes both proprietary technology platforms and comprehensive manufacturing services, organized into Pharma Services (Oral Dose, Biologics, Specialty, Clinical Supply) and Self-Care/Consumer Health divisions, with advanced delivery technologies such as softgels, capsules, microemulsions, and unit-dose systems.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• RP Scherer Softgel: World's leading softgel technology and largest global manufacturer of softgels, with over 85 years of experience
• Zydis ODT
• GPEx
• SMARTag
• OptiForm Solution Suite
• OneBio Integrated Suite
• UpTempo AAV Platform
• Consumer Health
• Portfolio Accelerator
• CosmoPod
• Vegicaps
• Catalent Applied Drug Delivery Institute

Products and services

• Oral Dose Services Integrated CDMO solutions spanning oral dose development, manufacturing, and packaging, including tablets, capsules, orally disintegrating tablets, and softgels for pharmaceutical innovators.
• Biologics Services Comprehensive biologics development and manufacturing including drug substance, drug product, cell line development, and fill/finish services for biotech and pharmaceutical clients.
• Clinical Supply Services Clinical trial supply management, packaging, comparator sourcing, forecasting, and global distribution logistics services for clinical-stage drug developers.
• Self-Care / Consumer Health Services Development and manufacturing of OTC medicines, dietary supplements, and beauty products with advanced dosage forms for consumer health and wellness brands.
• Gene Therapy Services AAV-based gene therapy manufacturing including plasmid DNA, process development, CGMP manufacturing, and analytical services for gene therapy developers.
• Cell Therapy Services iPSC-based cell therapy manufacturing, CAR-T platforms, autologous and allogeneic cell therapy production, and commercial-scale manufacturing for cell therapy developers.
• Specialty Inhalation Services Pulmonary and nasal drug delivery development and manufacturing including dry powder inhaler (DPI) and nasal spray products at the Morrisville/RTP facility.
• Small Molecule Injectable Services Sterile injectable manufacturing services for small molecule pharmaceuticals.
• Orphan Drug Services Specialized manufacturing capabilities for rare disease therapies and orphan drugs.
• Qai™ Quality Assurance Solution Quality assurance solution designed to reimagine quality assurance processes for Catalent's manufacturing services.

Quantifiable outcome

• Over 50 clinical trials enabled through GPEx technology with 10 commercially approved products
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers3 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature8 records

Partnerships

Five partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• CarthericscoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 13 April 2026Expanded partnership through amended commercial license granting Cartherics access to Catalent's regulated induced pluripotent stem cell (iPSC) line for producing off-the-shelf natural killer cell therapies, including lead candidate CTH-401. Provides scalable manufacturing pathway and regulatory-backed foundation with prior US regulatory clearance for the cell line.
• Elpida TherapeuticscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerStrategic partnership for late-phase AAV manufacturing, announced in 2025. Catalent provides adeno-associated virus (AAV) manufacturing expertise for Elpida's gene therapy programs.
• Kappa BioscienceminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerJoint development of innovative nutritional supplement formulations combining K2Vital vitamin K2 with Catalent's delivery technologies (Vegicaps, EasyBurst) for heart and bone health products.
• Kemin IndustriesminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership for cognitive support supplement featuring Neumentix spearmint phenolic complex, utilizing Catalent's softgel formulation and dose design capabilities.
• AnklamExtraktminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerJoint development of OPTIBRIGHT nutritional supplement for dry eye discomfort combining MaquiBright extract with Omega-3s using Catalent's softgel technology.

Scale indicators10 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Emerging players

• IQVIA: Clinical and contract research services giant with overlap to Catalent's clinical supply services (packaging, comparator sourcing, distribution logistics) rather than drug product manufacturing.
• Charles River Laboratories: Provides CDMO and biologics services alongside its broader research models and preclinical CRO business. Comparable in biologics CDMO and discovery/manufacturing integration.

Direct peers

• Lonza Group: Swiss-headquartered global CDMO leader with comparable end-to-end offerings across small molecules, biologics, and cell & gene therapies. Closest large-scale direct competitor to Catalent across modalities.
• AGC Biologics: Global CDMO providing cell line development, biologics manufacturing, and gene therapy services. Direct competitor in Catalent's GPEx cell line and cell/gene therapy categories.
• Siegfried Holding: Swiss CDMO offering API manufacturing and finished dosage forms. Directly comparable to Catalent's small-molecule drug substance and drug product CDMO business.
• Samsung Biologics: Korean biologics-focused CDMO with massive mammalian cell-culture capacity. Direct competitor in the biologics drug substance and drug product CDMO segment where Catalent competes.
• WuXi Biologics / WuXi AppTec: Asia-based global CDMO with end-to-end biologics and small molecule capabilities. Direct competitor in biologics CDMO, cell therapy, and integrated drug development services.
• Boehringer Ingelheim BioXcellence: CDMO arm of Boehringer Ingelheim focused on biologics contract manufacturing, including mammalian cell culture and fill-finish. Direct overlap with Catalent's biologics drug substance business.
• Recipharm: European CDMO focused on oral dose, sterile injectables, and biologics. Comparable in scale and service mix to Catalent's oral dose and specialty offerings.

Broad incumbents

• Thermo Fisher Scientific (Patheon CDMO): Operates Patheon, a major CDMO franchise, as part of its broader life sciences tools and services portfolio. Overlaps directly with Catalent in oral dose, biologics, and clinical supply.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat6 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/catalentpharma
• YouTubeyoutube.com/user/catalent
• Facebookfacebook.com/CatalentPharmaSolutions
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/162912

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles10 records

Subsidiaries4 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds3 records

Investors1 record

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A12 records

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Catalent Pharma Solutions