On Thursday, /02//2024 Amgen announced it would halt the development of its experimental weight loss pill, opting instead to focus on its injectable drug MariTide and other obesity-related products currently in development.
Amgen is competing in the bustling weight loss drug market, projected by some analysts to be worth $100 billion by decade’s end. This market is currently led by Novo Nordisk and Eli Lilly. Despite this, Amgen sees other opportunities to carve out market share. “Given what we’ve observed with the oral drug, we will not continue its development. Instead, we’re focusing our investments in the obesity sector on MariTide and several preclinical assets,” stated Jay Bradner, Amgen’s chief scientific officer, during an earnings call.
The company is advancing with MariTide, an injectable treatment for obesity that’s in a mid-stage trial involving overweight or obese adults without diabetes. Amgen anticipates releasing initial study results later this year, with Bradner expressing satisfaction with the progress thus far.
Additionally, Amgen plans to initiate a phase two trial of MariTide for diabetes treatment and is in discussions with regulators about a late-stage trial. Following these updates, Amgen’s stock saw a more than 10% increase in extended trading on Thursday.
Amgen also continues development on other weight management drugs. Its oral drug, AMG-786, recently became the second weight loss pill the company has discontinued in the past year.
Meanwhile, Pfizer last December discontinued a twice-daily version of its obesity pill, danuglipron, due to patient intolerance in mid-stage trials. Pfizer is now working on a once-daily version of this medication.
Investor interest is keen on Amgen’s innovative approach in its pipeline of experimental weight loss treatments. Amgen’s experimental injection differs from current treatments like Novo Nordisk’s Wegovy and Eli Lilly’s Zepbound. It stimulates a gut hormone receptor known as GLP-1 to regulate appetite, while it blocks another receptor, GIP, which Zepbound activates. Unlike Wegovy, which doesn’t target GIP, Amgen’s treatment aims to suppress appetite and possibly improve metabolic breakdown of sugars and fats.
Clinical trials suggest Amgen’s injectable treatment may also help patients maintain weight loss after discontinuing use. The company is exploring less frequent dosing schedules, which could offer more convenience compared to existing weekly treatments. In a recent phase one trial, patients receiving the highest dose of MariTide monthly lost an average of 14.5% of their body weight within 12 weeks.
On the same day, Amgen reported first-quarter results that exceeded Wall Street predictions, thanks in part to its acquisition of Horizon Therapeutics. The company posted earnings of $3.96 per share on revenues of $7.45 billion, slightly above expectations. This includes $914 million from Horizon’s products, such as the Tepezza treatment for thyroid eye disease. Excluding Horizon products, Amgen’s sales grew 6% from the previous year, with significant volume growth in ten products.
Amgen also revised its full-year revenue projection slightly upwards, now expecting between $32.5 billion and $33.8 billion, and adjusted full-year profit forecasts to range from $19 to $20.20 per share. Analysts anticipate a full-year revenue of $32.95 billion and an adjusted profit of $19.48 per share.
