Bristol Myers Squibb (BMS) and AstraZeneca are reportedly considering a merger that could create a company valued at nearly $400 billion.
The companies are among the largest pharmaceutical employers in the region.
BMS maintains its corporate headquarters and two major campuses in Lawrence Township. Its 280-acre Route 206 campus contains laboratories, offices and support facilities, while its Princeton Pike campus houses commercial, research and product development operations.
AstraZeneca also lists Princeton as a work location and employs pharmaceutical professionals throughout central New Jersey. Its North American commercial headquarters is in Wilmington, Delaware.
The companies have held preliminary discussions in recent months about combining, according to published reports. The structure of a possible transaction has not been disclosed, and it is unclear whether the talks are continuing.
A merger would create the world’s fourth-largest pharmaceutical company by market value and the largest by revenue. As of July 31, BMS was valued at about $133 billion and AstraZeneca at about $264 billion.
The BMS Route 206 campus serves as its corporate headquarters and an early-stage drug discovery site. The Princeton Pike campus houses employees working in commercial operations, research and development and product supply.
The potential merger comes as BMS continues a restructuring effort that has resulted in several rounds of job reductions in New Jersey. The company plans to eliminate hundreds of additional positions as part of an effort to reduce costs by $2 billion by the end of 2027.
Despite the reductions, BMS remains one of Mercer County’s largest private employers.
A merger would combine two companies with significant cancer-treatment portfolios. They also sell competing cancer immunotherapies. BMS markets Opdivo, while AstraZeneca markets Imfinzi, an overlap that could draw antitrust scrutiny.
BMS is seeking to offset declining revenue from older medicines and prepare for patent expirations affecting products including Eliquis and Opdivo.
AstraZeneca has been expanding its U.S. investments in research, manufacturing and commercial operations. It employed nearly 18,000 people at 23 U.S. sites in 2025 and plans to invest $50 billion in the United States by 2030. Investors reacted skeptically to the reports. AstraZeneca shares fell about 9% on Aug. 3, while BMS shares declined by less than 1%.
AstraZeneca declined to comment on the reports. BMS did not immediately respond to requests for comment from several news organizations.
