FTSE 100 news / Companies and sectors / Pharma and healthcare / 2 October 2026
Pharma and healthcare: sector news on Friday 2 October 2026
Average tone +0.2 (neutral) across 5 companies with relevant coverage, from 42 stories.
Company by company
| Company | Tone | Stories | What the coverage was about |
|---|---|---|---|
| AstraZeneca | +1.7 | 17 | Coverage was dominated by AstraZeneca's $2 billion investment in Summit Therapeutics and related cancer trial collaborations, which brought a small share price dip. |
| GSK | +1.7 | 12 | Coverage mixed pipeline progress, including a liver candidate from the Wave partnership and a reported Nuvalent deal, with the completed Haleon exit. |
| Haleon | −5.0 | 6 | Coverage was mostly about Haleon's shares slipping after JPMorgan put it on negative catalyst watch, with targets cut and growth worries ahead of the Q3 update. |
| Smith & Nephew | −4.7 | 5 | Coverage centred on the shares hitting a 52-week low and trading under pressure despite a new knee system clearance. |
| Convatec | +7.2 | 2 | Coverage was mildly positive, led by Bank of America raising its price target on Convatec to 300p. |
Strongest stories in the sector
- +9.2 BofA raises target for ConvaTec stock to GBp 300
BofA raising price target shows analyst confidence in Convatec. - −9.2 Smith & Nephew stock hits 52-week low at 26.39 USD
Shares hit 52-week low, signalling weak market confidence - −8.3 HLN Stock Slips Onto Negative Watch As Targets Cut
Negative watch and price target cuts weigh on the stock. - +7.5 NUVL Stock Surges 39% Premarket – Why Is GSK Buying This Boston-Based Oncology Company?
Reported acquisition of oncology company Nuvalent, expanding cancer pipeline. - −7.5 Haleon (HLN) Slips As JPMorgan Flags Negative Catalyst Watch
JPMorgan places Haleon on negative catalyst watch; shares slip. - −7.0 Haleon Slips as Growth Worries Build Ahead of Q3 Update
Shares slip on growth worries before Q3 update. - +6.7 GSK adds liver candidate from Wave RNA partnership
GSK adds liver candidate from Wave partnership. - −6.7 Why is GSK stock down today? Selloff intensifies, key levels to watch
Selloff in GSK shares intensifies. - +6.0 Wave lands USD 12m as GSK advances SpiNA siRNA program
GSK advances siRNA programme, triggering milestone payment to Wave. - +5.8 ORPATHYS plus TAGRISSO FDA application supports AstraZeneca stock after support test
FDA application for Orpathys plus Tagrisso supports outlook. - −5.8 GSK plc : JP Morgan reiterates its Sell rating
JP Morgan maintains Sell rating. - +5.5 How Is GSK (LSE:GSK) Stock Reacting This Week To Its Wave Life Sciences Liver Candidate?
Wave liver candidate progress and share reaction.
Pharma and healthcare: every day · FTSE 100 overview for the day