Depomed released a statement that Actavis Group, a generic drug manufacturer filed a paragraph IV challenge against Gralise, Depomed’s once-daily gabapentin formulation. NEUTRAL on Paragraph IV We view this event as having no net impact. Patent challenges are not unexpected in this pharmaceutical environment, especially in the drug delivery space. The current generic drug legislation rewards early […]
LXRX – Lexicon Pharmaceuticals is Overvalued
Lexicon Pharma stocks its drug candidate pipeline with a discovery platform based on mouse gene knockout technology, which has allowed them to study the roles of different proteins in disease and select drug targets accordingly. The company’s major clinical programs are headlined by their candidate for type 2 diabetes, LX4211. LXRX has consistently talked about […]
BMY & INHX – Bristol-Myers Squibb Buys Inhibitex for $2.5 Billion
Bristol-Myers Squibb Buys Inhibitex for $2.5 Billion On Saturday, Bristol announced it would acquire Inhibitex for $26 a share, about $2.5 billion dollars, a 163% premium to the companies $9.87 Friday closing price. Inhibitex had been the hot topic of takeover speculation lately for its HCV drug INX-189, a coveted nucleotide polymerase inhibitor. The hepatitis […]
ACHN – Initiating Coverage
Achillion: Initiating Coverage Background: Achillion is a small biotech focused on the development of a cure for Hepatitis C. It has several compounds in its pipeline, all unpartnered. The two leading products are next-generation protease inhibitors, ACH-1625 and ACH-2684, followed up by a duo of NS5A inhibitors, ACH-2928 and ACH-3102. There has been considerable M&A […]
PFE & BMY – Quick Update on Pfizer’s and Bristol’s Apixaban
In the past week Bristol Myers Squibb (NYSE:BMY) and Pfizer (NYSE:PFE) have had two notably regulatory events for Apixiban, or ELIQUIS. On November 25th, the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE) made an unusually rapid decision to adopt and cover Apixaban for use by the state health service in the UK. This […]
ASH Stock Preview
2011 ASH Stock Preview It’s the end of the year, which can mean only one thing- the American Society of Hematology Convention is coming up! ASH is the year’s largest meeting for researchers and investors interested in hematology, or blood cancers. This year’s convention will be held from December 9th through 12th in sunny San […]
PFE & BMY – The anticoagulant market & the Apixaban Catalyst
Background: The market for anti-thrombosis agents is set for dramatic changes. A thrombus is an aggregation of platelets which plays a key part in several life-threatening diseases, such as myocardial infarction, stroke, deep-vein thrombosis, pulmonary embolism, stent thrombosis, as well as other medical conditions. The market for therapies against thrombosis can be broken down simply […]
Bristol-Myers Squibb- High Dividend, Zero Growth
Jason Chew With a 5% dividend, Bristol-Myers Squibb provides one the highest yields you can find. This makes BMY a very attractive stock for income investors, especially considering today’s near-zero interest rate environment. There are however, a couple hiccups for investors to be aware of- Bristol is set to lose patent protection on its best-selling […]
Metformin lowers risks of diabetes… and pancreatic cancer
Metformin, a first-line diabetes treatment, lowers the risk of pancreatic cancer by 62%. According to a study conducted by Donghui Li, Ph.D from the University of Texas M.D. Anderson Cancer Center in Houston, drugs like Glumetza, Fortamet, and Glucophage were associated with a significantly reduced risk of pancreatic cancer. The study was a hospital-based, case-control […]
