Is internal R&D, M&A or licensing most impactful on the number of FDA drug approvals?

I recently read an interesting paper from Prof. Alexander Schuhmacher et al. on the impact of M&A and licensing on FDA drug approvals of leading pharmaceutical companies.

He and his team reviewed 14 of the 20 biggest pharma companies by revenue in 2022, to look at how spending on internal R&D and activity in M&A and licensing contributed to approvals.

Below is a graphic based on key data from the paper, which you can read in full here: https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1359644625000194

Note: Use the arrows at the bottom of the PDF to scroll through the pages.