The Year of the Tripledemic

(NewsDirect)

COVID-19 may have lost its daily news headline status, but the disease rages on with 2700 weekly deaths in the U.S. and millions of Americans chronically disabled from long-COVID, 4 million of which are being kept from work. This winter time, a terrible year for RSV as well as a potentially worse flu season could add insult to injury especially when one considers the fact that COVID-19 leaves some people with an impaired immune system similar to what HIV does to cause AIDS. The multiplication of disease could amplify the risks of influenza and RSV to result in more severe cases of these diseases which may result in increased deaths and morbidity. And that isn't something our country nor the world can afford. There are already reports of Tamiflu generics being in short supply, and it's just barely the New Year. Fortunately, there are several biotech and pharma companies advancing solutions for RSV, flu, and COVID, including two that may have a solution for all three of these viruses that are currently plaguing the U.S. However, deciding which ones are worth an investment in is not necessarily an easy task.

5 Biotech and Pharma Companies Spearheading Viral Tripledemic

The first company that everyone thinks of when considering COVID-19 solutions is Pfizer (NYSE: PFE). With the Comirnaty COVID vaccine and 3CL inhibitor Paxlovid, the company's COVID antiviral, the company is in a market-leading position for COVID, raking in tens of billions in revenues for both products. What is less well-known is that Pfizer is also on a roll with RSV. The company announced in November that its RSV vaccine candidate used in maternal immunization for infants was effective against infant death, making it likely the first available maternal vaccine to protect against infant RSV death. The vaccine is also effective in older adults. And if that weren't already enough, the company acquired ReViral and its RSV therapeutics for $525 million, including upfront and milestone payments, with an expectation that the therapeutics would bring in $1.5 billion to Pfizer. ReViral's main candidate is a fusion inhibitor sisunatovir which is in phase 2. Pfizer is also initiating a phase 3 study for its influenza vaccine, making it a leader in the tripledemic. Indeed, its 2022 COVID revenue is expected to be over $50 billion.

Big Pharma competitors GSK (NYSE: GSK) and Roche are also key players in the tripledemic race. Roche was the initial innovator of the influenza antiviral blockbuster, Tamiflu, but the company has made recent progress with COVID, too. The company is well known for its IL-6 inhibitor (an anti-inflammatory monoclonal antibody) approval in severe COVID-19. For next steps against influenza, the company has developed a new therapeutic called baloxavir marboxil, aka Xofluza, which unfortunately has some severe drawbacks in causing drug resistance mutations at quite a high rate such that it's not necessarily a good choice for kids. This could derail its blockbuster follow-up to the Tamiflu success seen years ago. Roche is certainly outshined by Pfizer in the Tripledemic race.

GSK's progress is more straightforward. Known for its prowess in the antiviral space, GSK was granted a priority review and PDUFA date of May 23, 2023 from the FDA due to its RSV vaccine candidate achieving a high 82.6% efficacy in its pivotal trial. The company has early stage monoclonal antibodies and vaccines against influenza, as well as late-stage studies for COVID-19 vaccines and neutralizing antibodies. What's missing are antiviral candidates for the diseases, and so while one might call GSK a leader in the tripledemic, they are also outshined by Pfizer.

One smaller company, Icosavax (NASDAQ: ICVX), is advancing vaccine candidates for all three diseases, but the one drawback is that they're not past phase 1 for any of their candidates.

The company's secret sauce lies in its VLP (virus-like particle), which allows viral proteins to be assembled more similarly to an actual virus and is supposed to improve the immune response compared to vaccines that use these proteins alone, like mRNA vaccines. The company recently hit the headlines with positive phase 1 clinical trial results for its RSV vaccine with sustained neutralizing antibody responses through 6 months; durability of response was a key reason for developing VLP vaccines. Icosavax is moving forward with this vaccine in combination with its hMPV virus-like particles as the only vaccine for the elderly population targeting the two leading causes of pneumonia. ICVX is particularly well funded with $229 million in current assets reported at the end of Q3 2022, which appears sufficient to support the company for more or less than 2 years based on their current burn rate.

Unfortunately, for common yearly diseases like COVID, influenza, and RSV, vaccines are only a partial answer. Another small pharma company, Bioxytran Inc. (OTCMKTS: BIXT), might have antiviral treatment solutions for all three viruses. Bioxytran recently released slam-dunk results from their ProLectin-M antiviral, which had a 100% response rate reducing the viral load of COVID-19 patients to undetectable levels in just a few days, effectively curing every single patient on the drug. These results are unprecedented and quite possibly the best COVID antiviral results ever recorded. The company's drugs are made using carbohydrate chemistry which usually means a benign safety profile. Unbeknownst to most investors, the company appears to be working on or considering treating other viruses including influenza and RSV , and if BIXT can show its RSV and influenza antivirals work like its COVID antiviral, then the company would have multiple potential blockbuster products. ProLectin-M is a phase 3 ready drug with results expected in 2023.

Conclusion

These leading tripledemic companies are focusing on the current and future problems facing the nation. But when it comes to investment risk and reward, there are two clear winners. With respect to the bigger pharma companies with established sales, Pfizer is by far the undisputed COVID-19 champion with a forward P/E ratio of ~8x compared with GSK at ~11 and Roche at ~14. Market leadership typically comes with a premium price tag so Pfizer is clearly the best value when looking at market leadership and forward price/earnings ratios.

However, multi-bagger returns are unlikely to be seen with big pharma. Bioxytran, however, appears to be a smaller biotech that could return multiples to investors. Big Pharma is licensing COVID-19 antiviral candidates from various biotech companies for hundreds of millions in deal value, and some of these companies are already worth that in market capitalization. When considering the value of each of the companies, Bioxytran stands out with just a $50 million market capitalization and a phase 3 ready COVID-19 antiviral that appears to best Paxlovid in effectiveness. This compares favorably to Icosavax's $350 million market cap based on three phase 1 assets. With positive phase 3 results or a pharma licensing agreement, BIXT shares could see a rerating higher, potentially to the much more reasonable $350 million dollar range, or 7x the current price.

Investors might consider a dual investment in PFE and BIXT to take advantage of the tripledemic and bolster portfolio returns.

Razorpitch Inc. is a marketing communications and investor relations firm serving private, pre-IPO, and public companies. RazorPitch specializes in corporate, investor, and stakeholder communications, with a primary focus on sponsored media. Our goal is to raise visibility, expand awareness, and increase value. To learn more, visit RazorPitch.com .

Disclaimers: The Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 provides investors a safe harbor in regard to forward-looking statements. Any statements that express or involve discussions with respect to predictions, expectations, beliefs, plans, projections, assumptions, objectives, goals, assumptions of future events or performance are not statements of historical fact may be forward looking statements. Forward looking statements are based on expectations, estimates, and projections at the time the statements are made that involve a number of risks and uncertainties which could cause actual results or events to differ materially from those presently anticipated. Forward looking statements in this action may be identified through use of words such as projects, foresee, expects, will, anticipates, estimates, believes, understands, or that by statements, indicating certain actions & quotes; may, could or might occur Understand there is no guarantee past performance is indicative of future results. Investing in micro-cap or growth securities is highly speculative and carries an extremely high degree of risk. It is possible that an investor's investment may be lost or due to the speculative nature of the companies profiled. RazorPitch is responsible for the production and distribution of this content. RazorPitch is not operated by a licensed broker, a dealer, or a registered investment advisor. It should be expressly understood that under no circumstances does any information published herein represent a recommendation to buy or sell a security. RazorPitch authors, contributors, or its agents, may be compensated for preparing research, video graphics, and editorial content. RazorPitch has not been compensated to produce this content. As part of that content, readers, subscribers, and webs are expected to read the full disclaimers and financial disclosure statement that can be found on our website.

Contact Details

RazorPitch

Mark McKelvie

+1 585-301-7700

Mark@RazorPitch.com

Company Website

https://razorpitch.com

Copyright (c) 2023 TheNewswire - All rights reserved.

News Provided by TheNewsWire via QuoteMedia

PFE
The Conversation (0)
Arvinas and Pfizer Announce Upcoming Vepdegestrant  Poster Presentations at the 2023 European Society for Medical Oncology  Breast Cancer Annual Congress

Arvinas and Pfizer Announce Upcoming Vepdegestrant Poster Presentations at the 2023 European Society for Medical Oncology Breast Cancer Annual Congress

Arvinas, Inc. (Nasdaq: ARVN) and Pfizer Inc. (NYSE: PFE) today announced they will present updated data related to vepdegestrant (ARV-471) at the 2023 European Society for Medical Oncology (ESMO) Breast Cancer Annual Congress. Vepdegestrant is a novel investigational PROTAC ® estrogen receptor (ER) protein degrader that is being jointly developed by Arvinas and Pfizer for the treatment of patients with early and locally advanced or metastatic ER positivehuman epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2) negative (ER+HER2-) breast cancer. Four posters will be presented during the poster session at the annual congress, which will be held from May 11-13, 2023, in Berlin, Germany.

News Provided by GlobeNewswire via QuoteMedia

Keep reading...Show less
Pfizer Reports First-Quarter 2023 Results

Pfizer Reports First-Quarter 2023 Results

  • First-Quarter 2023 Revenues of $18.3 Billion
    • Expected Decline in Comirnaty (1) Revenue Drove 26% Operational Decrease in First-Quarter 2023 Revenues
    • First-Quarter 2023 Revenues from Comirnaty (1) and Paxlovid of $7.1 Billion
    • Excluding Contributions from Comirnaty (1) and Paxlovid, Revenues Grew 5% Operationally
  • First-Quarter 2023 Reported Diluted EPS (2) of $0.97, a Year-Over-Year Decline of 29%, and Adjusted Diluted EPS (3) of $1.23, a Year-Over-Year Decline of 24%
  • Pfizer Reaffirms Full-Year 2023 Financial Guidance (4)
  • Pfizer Continued to Make Significant Progress Toward an Unprecedented Number of Anticipated New Product and Indication Launches; Milestones Include FDA Approvals for Zavzpret, Cibinqo for Adolescents and Prevnar 20 in Pediatric Patients

Pfizer Inc. (NYSE: PFE) reported financial results for the first quarter of 2023 and reaffirmed full-year 2023 financial guidance.

The first-quarter 2023 earnings presentation and accompanying prepared remarks from management as well as the quarterly update to Pfizer's R&D pipeline can be found at www.pfizer.com .

News Provided by Business Wire via QuoteMedia

Keep reading...Show less
XTANDI®  plus Leuprolide Reduced the Risk of Metastasis by 58% in Non-Metastatic Hormone-Sensitive Prostate Cancer versus Placebo plus Leuprolide

XTANDI® plus Leuprolide Reduced the Risk of Metastasis by 58% in Non-Metastatic Hormone-Sensitive Prostate Cancer versus Placebo plus Leuprolide

Data from Phase 3 EMBARK trial to be presented as a plenary session during the 2023 American Urological Association Annual Meeting

Results show the potential for XTANDI to add to the standard of care in prostate cancer, if approved

News Provided by PR Newswire via QuoteMedia

Keep reading...Show less
U.S. FDA Approves PREVNAR 20®, Pfizer's 20-valent Pneumococcal Conjugate Vaccine for Infants and Children

U.S. FDA Approves PREVNAR 20®, Pfizer's 20-valent Pneumococcal Conjugate Vaccine for Infants and Children

  • PREVNAR 20 offers the broadest serotype coverage of any pediatric pneumococcal conjugate vaccine, helping to protect against all 20 serotypes contained in the vaccine
  • PREVNAR 20 builds on PREVNAR 13 ® and includes seven additional serotypes shown to be associated with antibiotic resistance, heightened disease severity, invasive potential, and prevalence in pediatric pneumococcal cases. 1
  • The vaccine further advances Pfizer's pediatric pneumococcal vaccine portfolio and builds on more than 20 years of Pfizer leadership, legacy and innovation in developing pneumococcal conjugate vaccines

Pfizer Inc. (NYSE: PFE) announced today that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved PREVNAR 20 ® (20-valent Pneumococcal Conjugate Vaccine) for the prevention of invasive pneumococcal disease (IPD) caused by the 20 Streptococcus pneumoniae (pneumococcal) serotypes contained in the vaccine in infants and children six weeks through 17 years of age, and for the prevention of otitis media in infants six weeks through five years of age caused by the original seven serotypes contained in PREVNAR ® .

"Today's FDA approval of our vaccine, PREVNAR 20, now offers parents the ability to help protect their children against 20 pneumococcal serotypes in circulation, which represent the majority of pneumococcal disease in U.S. infants and children," 1,2 said Annaliesa Anderson, Ph.D., Senior Vice President and Chief Scientific Officer, Vaccine Research and Development, Pfizer. "This important PREVNAR 20 approval builds on more than 20 years of real-world impact with PREVNAR and PREVNAR 13, safety data, and effectiveness; highlighting Pfizer's leadership in developing groundbreaking pneumococcal conjugate vaccines to help protect infants and their families from life threatening infections. We are grateful to the families and clinical investigators who participated in this research and our colleagues who have worked tirelessly to develop this breakthrough vaccine."

News Provided by Business Wire via QuoteMedia

Keep reading...Show less
Pfizer Declares Second-Quarter 2023 Dividend

Pfizer Declares Second-Quarter 2023 Dividend

Board of Directors approves quarterly cash dividend of $0.41 per share

Pfizer Inc. (NYSE: PFE) today announced that its board of directors declared a $0.41 second-quarter 2023 dividend on the company's common stock, payable June 9, 2023, to holders of the Common Stock of record at the close of business on May 12, 2023. The second-quarter 2023 cash dividend will be the 338th consecutive quarterly dividend paid by Pfizer.

News Provided by Business Wire via QuoteMedia

Keep reading...Show less

Jamieson Wellness Inc. Announces Date of First Quarter 2024 Financial Results and Conference Call

Jamieson Wellness Inc. ("Jamieson Wellness" or the "Company") (TSX:JWEL) announced today that the Company will release its first quarter 2024 financial results after the market close on Thursday, May 9, 2024. The Company will host a conference call for investors at 5:00 p.m. Eastern Time to discuss the first quarter 2024 results.

The call can be accessed live over the telephone by dialing 1-800-717-1738 from Canada and the U.S. or 1-646-307-1865 from international locations. A replay will be available shortly after the call and can be accessed by dialing 1-844-512-2921 from Canada and the U.S. or 1-412-317-6671 from international locations. The passcode for the replay is 1179130 and it will be available until Thursday, May 23, 2024.

News Provided by Business Wire via QuoteMedia

Keep reading...Show less
Pill package with up arrow.

Top 3 Canadian Pharma Stocks of 2024

From established players to up-and-coming firms, Canada's pharmaceutical landscape is diverse and dynamic.

Three months into 2024, market watchers are keeping a close eye on pharma companies vying for the next major innovation.

Here the Investing News Network lists the top Canadian pharma stocks trading on the Toronto Stock Exchange (TSX) and the TSX Venture Exchange (TSXV). Companies considered had market caps above C$100 million and were arranged based on year-on-year performance. All data was compiled on April 16, 2024, using TradingView’s stock screener.

Keep reading...Show less

New Novartis Fabhalta® data show clinically meaningful and statistically significant proteinuria reduction of 38.3% versus placebo for patients with IgA nephropathy

  • APPLAUSE-IgAN is first and only Phase III study to demonstrate significant proteinuria reduction by targeting the complement system in patients with IgAN 1

  • IgAN is a heterogeneous, progressive, rare kidney disease and is a major cause of chronic kidney disease worldwide 2 ; complement activation is a key driver of glomerular inflammation in IgAN 3,4

  • There is a need for effective, targeted therapies for IgAN 2,5 ; up to 30% of patients with persistent proteinuria (≥1 g/day) may progress to kidney failure within 10 years, requiring maintenance dialysis and/or kidney transplantation 6

  • Novartis continues to advance broad renal portfolio in late-stage development, exploring the potential to slow disease progression and extend dialysis-free life

Novartis today presented results from a pre-specified interim analysis of the Phase III APPLAUSE-IgAN study of Fabhalta ® (iptacopan), an investigational Factor B inhibitor of the alternative complement pathway, in patients with IgA nephropathy (IgAN) 1 . In the analysis, patients treated with Fabhalta achieved a 38.3% (p

Proteinuria reduction is an increasingly recognized surrogate marker correlating with progression to kidney failure and has been used as an endpoint in IgAN clinical trials to support accelerated approvals 7 . The study also showed that Fabhalta was well tolerated with a favorable safety profile consistent with previously reported data 1,8 . Results were presented today during a late-breaking clinical trials session at the World Congress of Nephrology (WCN) in Buenos Aires, Argentina 1 .

News Provided by PR Newswire via QuoteMedia

Keep reading...Show less

Arvinas Enters into a Transaction with Novartis, including a Global License Agreement for the Development and Commercialization of PROTAC® Androgen Receptor Protein Degrader ARV-766 for the Treatment of Prostate Cancer

Arvinas to receive a $150 million upfront payment for the license of ARV-766 and the sale of Arvinas' preclinical AR-V7 program, with the potential under the License Agreement for up to $1.01 billion in development, regulatory, and commercial milestones, as well as tiered royalties –

– Novartis to be responsible for worldwide clinical development and commercialization of ARV-766 –

News Provided by GlobeNewswire via QuoteMedia

Keep reading...Show less

New Novartis data show early addition of twice-yearly* Leqvio® following maximally tolerated statin therapy significantly reduces LDL-C in ASCVD patients in real-world setting

  • V- INITIATE trial demonstrates that early initiation with Leqvio, prior to guideline-recommended ezetimibe, for ASCVD patients unable to achieve LDL-C goal on statin therapy alone led to significant LDL-C reduction vs. clinician-determined usual care (60% vs. 7% respectively) 1
  • A significantly greater proportion of the ASCVD patients receiving Leqvio achieved guideline-recommended LDL-C goal vs. the usual care arm while maintaining adherence to statin treatment 1
  • Results from usual care arm reinforce the urgent need for more aggressive LDL-C lowering in ASCVD patients, 92% of whom did not reach their LDL-C goal with statins alone 1
  • The Leqvio safety profile was consistent with the Phase III clinical studies and long-term open-label extension trials for up to 6 years of treatment 1-4

Novartis today announced new data demonstrating the early addition of twice-yearly* Leqvio ® (inclisiran) to maximally tolerated statin therapy, prior to guideline-recommended ezetimibe, in a real-world setting significantly reduced low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C) in patients with atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease (ASCVD), including those with a history of an ASCVD-related event, who could not reach their goal on statin therapy alone 1 . The late-breaking data were presented at the 2024 American College of Cardiology's Annual Scientific Session & Expo and simultaneously published in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology .

"V-INITIATE evaluated a solution to the important challenge seen in clinical practice of too many patients with ASCVD not achieving guideline-recommended LDL-C goal on statins alone and effective non-statin therapies being markedly underutilized," said Michael Koren , M.D., Medical Director and CEO of Jacksonville Center for Clinical Research, and the primary investigator of the study. "Given the urgent need to more aggressively manage LDL-C, the results from V-INITIATE show that when added earlier in the treatment continuum, the structured use of effective non-statin therapies like Leqvio can significantly reduce LDL-C for ASCVD patients who are struggling to reach or maintain their LDL-C goal."

News Provided by PR Newswire via QuoteMedia

Keep reading...Show less

Latest Press Releases

Related News

×