Latest news with #MartinMakary
Yahoo
3 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
3 Surprising Stocks That Have More Than Doubled in 2025
Hims & Hers Health, FuboTV, and Groupon have all more than doubled in 2025. These companies took very different paths to their stellar year-to-date results. Hims & Hers Health has had to make some major changes to its business in recent months, but it's still positioned for healthy growth. 10 stocks we like better than Hims & Hers Health › This year has had its ups and downs on Wall Street, but some investments are rolling. There are 14 stocks with market caps north of $1 billion that have more than doubled so far in 2025 -- and some of the names will surprise you. Hims & Hers Health (NYSE: HIMS), FuboTV (NYSE: FUBO), and Groupon (NASDAQ: GRPN) -- yes, that Groupon -- are among those 14 stocks that have more than doubled their shareholder money this year. All three have taken entirely different routes to thumping the market this year. After it posted a whopping 183% gain last year, it wouldn't have been shocking to see Hims & Hers Health stock take a breather in 2025. The online healthcare platform that got its start by making it easier for people to secure prescriptions for erectile dysfunction drugs and hair growth treatments blew up last year due to the popularity of its compounded GLP-1 injectables for weight loss. Because Novo Nordisk (NYSE: NVO) was unable to produce Wegovy fast enough to meet surging demand, the Food and Drug Administration put the drug on its official shortage list. That opened up a legal loophole for businesses that operate as compounding pharmacies to produce and sell their own versions of the patented treatment. Hims & Hers cashed in with its own GLP-1 drug, featuring the same active ingredient found in Wegovy and Ozempic -- semaglutide. More importantly, it offered that treatment at more aggressive discounts than Novo Nordisk was putting on the name-brand versions. Hims & Hers Health was doing fine even before it hopped on the GLP-1 bandwagon in spring 2024. Its revenue has risen by at least 65% in each of the last six years. However, the popular new product helped it accelerate its top-line growth in 2024, and it continued to speed up in the first quarter of this year, when revenue more than doubled. This year began with early gains. Late in 2025, incoming President Donald Trump said he would tap Martin Makary to head the FDA. Makary served on the board of a company that also was into GLP-1 compounding, so the market took the view that Hims & Hers' upticks would continue even after Novo Nordisk finished ramping up Wegovy production to a level that could meet patient demand. Matters didn't exactly play out that way. Hims & Hers stock scored an all-time high on Feb. 19, but within weeks, the share price was cut by more than half. Novo Nordisk's production of semaglutide reached the volume necessary to close the FDA loophole, and it seemed as if the semaglutide compounding ride was ending for Hims & Hers and its peers. Then, two things happened that brought investors back. Novo Nordisk cut deals with a small number of telehealth companies, including Hims & Hers, giving them the right to sell discounted monthly subscriptions of Wegovy. Hims & Hers also reported a blowout first quarter earlier this month, and management forecast that the balance of its business outside of compounding would still grow at a healthy 30% clip this year. One of the first stocks to double in 2025 was FuboTV. The company behind the namesake sports-centric live TV streaming service more than tripled in the first week of trading after it struck a transformative deal with Disney (NYSE: DIS). Fubo had just 1.7 million paid subscribers heading into this year, less than 10% of the roughly 20 million households paying for live TV streaming services that digitally recreate versions of the familiar cable or satellite TV bundle. The stock entered this year trading 98% below the peak it touched in late 2020, when management had dreams of turning the company into a streaming platform with an online sportsbook component. Fubo had to fold that hand, but it still had an ace up its sleeve. Disney and two other media giants had been hoping to launch Venu Sports, a monthly subscription service that would bundle content from all of their sports properties -- anchored by Disney's majority-owned ESPN -- into a digital subscription costing $43 a month. But Fubo sued, and last summer, it won an injunction blocking Venu's launch. In a move to clear that obstacle, Disney offered to acquire a 70% stake in FuboTV. The House of Mouse will contribute its larger Hulu + Live TV service -- with 4.6 million subscribers -- to Fubo. Fubo will also receive $220 million from the Venu partners in exchange for dropping its lawsuit. The deal with Disney isn't expected to close until the the first half of next year, but if it falls apart, Fubo would collect another $130 million. It also has access to a $145 million term loan from Disney. Then something amusing happened. Within days of the deal that would give Disney a majority stake in Fubo but keep the smaller company's management in control, the three Venu partners decided not to go through with their digital bundle. Fubo has had its share of growing pains, but it's in an interesting win-win situation here. However, the shares have been meandering along at levels well below those they reached during that initial spike in January. Finally, we have a more conventional doubling chart. Groupon's rise this year can be traced to two specific events: the fourth-quarter earnings report it delivered in early March, and the first-quarter report it released earlier this month. After eight consecutive years of declining revenues, the online discounter of local experiences is starting to turn the corner. Revenue did decline 5% in Q4 2024, but gross billings for its flagship North American business climbed 8%. Its latest report showed even more improvement. Groupon posted a strong and unexpected profit. Analysts now predict it will make a return to revenue growth this year, and that its improvements will accelerate in 2026. Its business model could also prove to be attractive to lead-seeking businesses if the U.S. economy loses steam -- so don't discount this discounter. Before you buy stock in Hims & Hers Health, consider this: The Motley Fool Stock Advisor analyst team just identified what they believe are the for investors to buy now… and Hims & Hers Health wasn't one of them. The 10 stocks that made the cut could produce monster returns in the coming years. Consider when Netflix made this list on December 17, 2004... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you'd have $639,271!* Or when Nvidia made this list on April 15, 2005... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you'd have $804,688!* Now, it's worth noting Stock Advisor's total average return is 957% — a market-crushing outperformance compared to 167% for the S&P 500. Don't miss out on the latest top 10 list, available when you join . See the 10 stocks » *Stock Advisor returns as of May 19, 2025 Rick Munarriz has positions in Walt Disney. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Walt Disney and fuboTV. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. 3 Surprising Stocks That Have More Than Doubled in 2025 was originally published by The Motley Fool
Forbes
4 days ago
- General
- Forbes
Kennedy Says Routine Covid Vaccines No Longer Recommended For Children And Pregnant Women
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention no longer recommends routine Covid-19 vaccines for pregnant women and healthy children, Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. announced Tuesday, as Kennedy—a noted vaccine skeptic—and other health officials pushed new federal guidelines in recent weeks. Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. announced the change, saying it was based ... More on 'common sense' and 'good science.' Kennedy, who appeared with National Institutes of Health director Jay Bhattacharya and Food and Drug Administration Martin Makary, said in a video posted to X the Covid vaccine was removed from the CDC's immunization schedule for pregnant women and healthy children. The CDC, whose website has not been updated with the change, previously recommended Covid vaccines for anyone six months and older, pregnant women and women trying to get pregnant. Kennedy claimed the Biden administration recommended children receive an additional Covid vaccine 'despite the lack of any clinical data to support the repeat booster strategy' among healthy youth. This is a developing story and will be updated.
Medscape
5 days ago
- Health
- Medscape
FDA Advisers Recommend No Changes to COVID Vaccine for Fall
US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) advisers recommended that manufacturers make no changes to the COVID-19 vaccine that will be available for boosters later this summer. The Vaccines and Related Biological Products Advisory Committee (VRBAC) voted 9-0 that the 2025-26 vaccines should stay the same, containing a single JN.1 strain, which has been dominant globally since 2024. 'There is efficacy,' said Panel Member Eric J. Rubin, MD, PhD, editor-in-chief of The New England Journal of Medicine and adjunct professor of immunology and infectious diseases at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, Boston. 'It's not fantastic. It's not what it was originally,' he said, adding but that in a population that has broad immunity to the SARS-COV-2 virus, 'it wasn't bad.' The agency usually follows its panels' advice, but nothing is certain for the vaccines this fall. As reported by Medscape Medical News , FDA Commissioner Martin Makary, MD, and FDA Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research Director Vinay Prasad, MD, in a 'town hall' on May 20 and in a paper in TheNew England Journal of Medicine said the agency planned to start requiring randomized, controlled trials for approval of COVID vaccines in healthy Americans who are younger than 65 years. Approvals of boosters over the last 4 years have been based on observational data, and the vaccines have been recommended for all Americans aged 6 months or older. The FDA has not held any further meetings nor issued a final rule or policy to clarify whether this year's COVID vaccine boosters would be required to conduct new trials. The agency may have signaled where it is headed with its May 17 full approval for Novavax's COVID-19 vaccine, which previously only had emergency use authorization. The FDA limited the vaccine's use to adults older than 65 years and anyone older than 12 years at high risk. Some panelists were concerned that a randomized trial requirement might cause delays. 'Is there a possibility that if we choose a different vaccine [strain], it is actually going to be different regulatory measures that are taken that would delay the vaccine getting to the market?' asked Stanley M. Perlman, MD, PhD, chair of microbiology and immunology at Carver College of Medicine, University of Iowa, Iowa City, Iowa. Rubin said he believes the observational data presented by COVID vaccine makers 'has a lot more richness,' than a randomized trial, given the various exposures to illness and vaccines in a widely varied population. 'I don't think the randomized, controlled trial is feasible,' said Rubin. David C. Kaslow, MD, director of the Office of Vaccines Research and Review at FDA, said that although the agency is still discussing how it will regulate COVID vaccines, 'I think there's a shared desired outcome for the timely availability of vaccines to prevent COVID-19.' Kaslow said the proposed new regulatory framework could be a 'potential topic for a future VRBPAC meeting.' Representatives from Pfizer, Moderna, and Novavax all said they would have vaccines ready for the fall. 'We look forward to working with the agency to ensure timely provision of appropriate data to support COVID-19 vaccine approval for those who need it most,' said Kayvon Modjarrad, MD, PhD, executive director of Viral Vaccines and Immunology Vaccine Research and Development at Pfizer. Continuing Burden, Low Vaccine Uptake At the meeting, US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) officials and vaccine makers said that COVID-19 is still dangerous, especially for those at highest risk, primarily individuals older than 75 years and children younger than 6 months. The CDC estimates that 30,000-50,000 people have died from COVID since October. Few Americans choose to get a COVID vaccine, hovering around 25% for adults aged 18 years to 64 years, rising to 50% for those older than 75 years, said Ruth Link-Gelles, PhD, MPH, of the CDC's National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases. Vaccine effectiveness against hospitalization and critical illness in immunocompetent adults older than 65 years was around 40%-50%, said Link-Gelles. It was the same or slightly lower for immunocompromised adults in the same age group. Pfizer estimated that COVID vaccines prevented some 107,000 hospitalizations and 6700 in-hospital deaths in 2024. The vaccine makers argued that their products are safe and effective. 'Our vaccines are among the most extensively-monitored products licensed,' said Pfizer's Modjarrad. The FDA, however, has recently instructed Pfizer and Moderna also to update labeling to expand a warning about myocarditis and pericarditis. Pfizer's label warned of an elevated risk in men 12- to 17-year-olds, Moderna's in men 18- to 24-year-olds. Both will now cite an elevated risk for men aged 16 years to 25 years. In its letter, the agency cited data from a Lancet study of patients with COVID-19- vaccine–associated myocarditis 'showing persistence of abnormal cardiac magnetic resonance imaging findings that are a marker for myocardial injury at a median follow-up of approximately 5 months.' Some Call for Withdrawal, Others for More Access During the hour-long public hearing portion of the meeting, most speakers asked the FDA to immediately recall all COVID vaccines, citing a variety of harms — many of them unproven. 'Rewind now and pull these shots,' said Brian Hooker, PhD, the chief scientific officer of Children's Health Defense — the organization formerly run by current Health and Human Services Department Secretary Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. Hooker cited myocarditis as a concern. 'Based on this alone, the product should have been completely withdrawn,' said Hooker. He also said that COVID vaccines 'have been also strongly associated with clotting disorders, including stroke, pulmonary embolism,' and other disorders. Kaitlin Sundling, MD, PhD, assistant professor of pathology and laboratory medicine at the Wisconsin State Lab of Hygiene, said COVID vaccines should be more widely available. 'All people, regardless of age and medical history, need broad access to regularly updated COVID vaccine formulations,' said Sundling, who added she was concerned about the FDA's potential requirement for randomized trials and to limit vaccine approvals to those older than 65 years or at high risk. Noting that the panel had essentially been asked to not talk about that proposed new COVID regulatory framework at the meeting, Sundling said 'There is a very real concern that this committee is being used as a pawn to eliminate vaccine access for the US population.'
UPI
22-05-2025
- UPI
U.S. officials say Chicago sting in February seized nearly $34M in illegal e-cigs
The FDA and U.S. Customs and Border Protection teamed up for a joint operation that recovered tens of millions of dollars worth of illegal e-cigarette products seized in Chicago, officials said Thursday. FDA Commissioner Martin Makary (pictured in March in Washington, D.C.) said the effort helps keeps e-cigs "out of the hands of our nation's youth." File Photo by Bonnie Cash/UPI | License Photo May 22 (UPI) -- Tens of millions of dollars worth of illegal e-cigarette products were seized in Chicago in a joint operation between the FDA and U.S. Customs and Border Protection, officials said Thursday. Officials say the sting in February that uncovered the China-originated packages was valued at about $33.8 million and were intended for distribution to multiple states. Investigators uncovered several illegal e-cig brands such as Snoopy Smoke, Raz and more. "We continue to see an increased number of shipments of vaping related products packaged and mislabeled to avoid detection," said Bret Koplow, acting director of the FDA's Center for Tobacco Products. The FDA and CBP sit on a joint federal task force focused on e-cigarette enforcement activity. "However, we have been successful at preventing these shipments from entering the U.S. supply chain," Koplow said, despite efforts to "conceal the true identity of these unauthorized e-cigarette products." February's seizure in Illinois was part of a joint federal operation to examine incoming U.S. shipments and prevent the entry of illegal e-cigarettes. "Seizures of illegal e-cigarettes keep products that haven't been authorized by the FDA out of the United States and out of the hands of our nation's youth," said FDA Commissioner Marty Makary. On Thursday, the FDA said many of the unauthorized shipments contained vague product descriptions with incorrect values in an "apparent attempt to evade duties." According to federal officials, most shipments violate the FDA's food, drug and cosmetic laws, while other products get confiscated due to intellectual property right violations on trademarked items. Additionally, they added that FDA officials sent import letters warning 24 tobacco importers. At the end of April, border agents busted a shipment of some 17,500 fake brand cigarettes from Vietnam valued at nearly $730,000 after pausing its arrival in Miami and intercepting it days later in Texas. Last year, U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers in Chicago made 121 seizures that contained more than 3.2 million banned electronic nicotine devices worth over $81 million, and the agency made a similar million-dollar seizure in June of illegal vape pens offloaded from China.
Epoch Times
22-05-2025
- Health
- Epoch Times
READ: Full Report From Make America Healthy Again Commission
A man holds a hat reading "Make America Healthy Again" at a press conference with Secretary of Health and Human Services Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and Food and Drug Administration Commissioner Martin Makary at the Department of Health and Human Services in Washington on April 22, 2025. Oliver Contreras/AFP via Getty Images
