Novartis Animal Health

What Novartis Animal Health does

Novartis AG is a Swiss-headquartered innovative medicines company that develops and commercializes prescription pharmaceuticals across four core therapeutic areas: cardiovascular, renal and metabolic; immunology; neuroscience; and oncology. The company operates multiple proprietary technology platforms, including AAV-based gene therapy (built around the 2018 AveXis acquisition and extended through Kate Therapeutics in 2024), xRNA/siRNA-based therapeutics (via the 2023 DTx Pharma acquisition), radioligand therapy, and inflammasome inhibitors; its DELIVER platform combines capsid library generation with in vivo selection and machine learning to evolve functional AAV capsid variants. Marketed and recently approved products include Zolgensma® (gene therapy for spinal muscular atrophy), Itvisma® (SMA, European Commission approved July 2026), Rhapsido® (a potential first targeted therapy for chronic inducible urticaria based on RemIND data from EAACI 2026), and the investigational delpacibart braxlosiran (Phase I/II success in FSHD, June 2026).

Novartis generates revenue primarily through prescription pharmaceutical product sales to physicians, hospitals, and healthcare systems, supplemented by pharmacy and wholesale distribution and managed access programs such as the Global Managed Access Program for Zolgensma. Go-to-market is driven by enterprise field sales teams, clinical trial recruitment, medical congress engagement, and patient advocacy partnerships (e.g., CML Advocates Network), with the company reaching 296 million patients worldwide across 50+ countries. R&D and commercial operations span Basel (headquarters), San Diego, Cambridge, East Hanover, Durham, Shanghai, and Hyderabad. The company is publicly traded (ticker: NVS), was formed in 1996 from the merger of Ciba-Geigy and Sandoz, and continues to consolidate its human pharmaceuticals focus; the firmographic reference to "Novartis Animal Health" reflects a historical divisional name, as the animal health business was divested and is not represented in the current data.

Name

Novartis Animal Health

Legal name

Novartis AG

Website

https://novartis.com

Company type

Public

Founded year

1996

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

5,001–10,000 employees

Short description

Novartis AG is a Basel-based, publicly traded pharmaceutical company (NVS) that develops and commercializes innovative medicines across cardiovascular, immunology, neuroscience, and oncology therapeutic areas using proprietary gene therapy, xRNA, radioligand, and inflammasome inhibitor platforms, serving 296 million patients globally across 50+ countries.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Veterinary Pharmaceuticals

NAICS

Veterinary Services (54194)

SIC

Pharmaceutical Preparations (2834), Biological Products, (No Disgnostic Substances) (2836)

akta.pro primary industry

Companion Animal Therapeutics (Rx) (HLAMAEAA)

akta.pro secondary industry

Livestock & Production Animal Therapeutics (Rx) (HLAMAEAB)

Keywords

• Veterinary pharmaceuticals
• Animal health products
• Livestock disease treatment
• Companion animal therapeutics
• Aquaculture medicines

Headquarters

HQ city

Basel

HQ country

Switzerland

HQ region

Europe

Offices7 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Pharmaceutical Product Sales: Novartis generates revenue primarily through the sale of prescription pharmaceutical medicines. The company develops and commercializes innovative medicines across four therapeutic areas: cardiovascular/renal/metabolic, immunology, neuroscience, and oncology. Revenue comes from direct product sales to healthcare providers, hospitals, and through distribution channels globally.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Novartis Animal Health develops and sells pharmaceutical products aimed at preventing and treating diseases in companion animals (pets), farm animals, and farmed fish. The division is a leader in the veterinary medicines market, with a portfolio spanning multiple animal species and health conditions. It operates as the animal health pharmaceutical unit of the Novartis group, headquartered in Basel, Switzerland.

Product overview

Novartis is an innovative medicines company that develops and commercializes pharmaceutical products across four main therapeutic areas: Cardiovascular, renal and metabolic; Immunology; Neuroscience; and Oncology. The company operates as a unified portfolio with major products including Itvisma® for spinal muscular atrophy, Rhapsido® for chronic inducible urticaria, Zolgensma® gene therapy, and delpacibart braxlosiran for facioscapulohumeral muscular dystrophy. The company also has a robust research pipeline addressing diseases of aging, global health challenges (malaria, leprosy, Chagas disease), and exploratory disease areas.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Quantifiable outcome

• Medicines reach 296 million people worldwide
• +1 more outcomes

Named customers2 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature5 records

Partnerships

Five partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• Kate TherapeuticscoreTechnology or Integration · 1 January 2024Novartis acquired Kate Therapeutics in November 2024 for up to USD 1.1 billion. The acquisition enhances gene therapy capabilities with DELIVER platform technology and preclinical candidates for DMD, FSHD, and DM1. Kate brought talent, expertise, and complementary capabilities in muscle-tropic capsids for neuromuscular diseases.
• D Tx PharmacoreTechnology or Integration · 1 January 2023Acquired DTx Pharma in 2023 to add xRNA technology platform and siRNA-based therapies for neuroscience indications. Bryan Laffitte returned to Novartis to lead unified genetic medicines group combining gene therapy and xRNA expertise.
• AveXiscoreTechnology or Integration · 1 January 2018Acquired AveXis in 2018 to establish gene therapy capabilities for neuroscience. AveXis brought expertise in adeno-associated virus (AAV) gene therapies for neuromuscular diseases.
• Philanthropies, Academics, Governments, and Non-profit PartnerscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerNovartis Global Health Disease Area collaborates with philanthropies, academics, governments, and non-profit partners to discover novel medicines for poverty-related and neglected diseases including malaria, diarrheal disease, dengue, and visceral leishmaniasis.
• CML Advocates NetworkcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerNovartis partnered with CML Advocates Network to improve clinical trial design for chronic myeloid leukemia treatments. Patient advocates reviewed study protocols and recommended removing bone marrow aspiration requirements, resulting in enrollment completed 10 months ahead of schedule.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Virbac: Independent global veterinary pharmaceutical company focused on companion and food-producing animal health; comparable product breadth and target customer base as a multi-species vet pharma specialist.
• Zoetis: Largest pure-play animal health company globally, offering pharma, vaccines, diagnostics, and diagnostics across companion and livestock species — directly comparable to Novartis Animal Health's stated multi-species veterinary therapeutics focus.
• Elanco Animal Health: Acquired Novartis Animal Health in 2019, inheriting much of the same portfolio in companion animal and livestock therapeutics; serves as the most direct comp given product and customer overlap.
• Ceva Santé Animale: Multispecies animal health company offering pharmaceuticals, vaccines, and biologicals for companion animals, livestock, and poultry; comparable in global veterinary pharma positioning.
• Vetoquinol: Independent animal health company with pharmaceuticals and non-medicated products for companion and production animals; comparable as a multi-species vet pharma competitor.
• Phibro Animal Health: Animal health and mineral nutrition company focused on livestock pharmaceuticals and vaccines; comparable in livestock therapeutics and farm-animal health product overlap.
• Merck Animal Health (MSD AH): Animal health division of Merck/MSD offering vaccines, parasiticides, and pharmaceuticals across companion animals, livestock, and aquaculture; comparable in multi-species scope and pharma-grade product depth.
• Boehringer Ingelheim Animal Health: Veterinary pharma and biologics business of Boehringer Ingelheim with strong vaccines and therapeutics across companion and production animals; acquired Merial to expand footprint similarly to the Novartis Animal Health positioning.

Emerging players

• IDEXX Laboratories: Veterinary diagnostics leader serving companion animal clinics globally; complementary rather than directly competitive but shares the same veterinary customer base and premium animal health positioning.
• Dechra Pharmaceuticals: Specialty veterinary pharmaceuticals company focused on companion animal endocrinology, dermatology, and other therapeutic categories; comparable as a veterinary therapeutics specialist.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights5 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/novartis
• Facebookfacebook.com/novartis
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/novartis

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Subsidiaries1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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

M&A

Investments

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

Frequently asked questions about Novartis Animal Health