Latest news with #pharmaceutical
Yahoo
4 hours ago
- Business
- Yahoo
AstraZeneca Announces $50B US Investment Amid Pharma Tariff Threat
AstraZeneca (AZN, Financials) said Monday it will invest $50 billion in the United States by 2030 to expand manufacturing and research, positioning itself ahead of potential import tariffs under President Donald Trump's administration. The British-Swedish pharmaceutical firm said the plan includes building a new manufacturing facility in Virginiaits largest single capital outlay in 26 yearsand expanding operations across Maryland, Massachusetts, California, Indiana, and Texas. The spending will also support AstraZeneca's U.S. clinical trial supply network and development of weight-loss and cardiovascular drugs. CEO Pascal Soriot unveiled the plan in Washington, calling for other countries to pay more for drugs to balance global research funding. The United States cannot build or carry the cost of R&D for the entire world, he said. The company aims to reach $80 billion in annual revenue by 2030, with half of that coming from the U.S., which already accounted for over 40% of sales in 2024. The move follows similar announcements from Roche (ROG, Financials), Eli Lilly (LLY, Financials), Johnson & Johnson (JNJ, Financials), Novartis (NOVN, Financials), and Sanofi (SASY, Financials). Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick said the plan aligns with Trump's push to reduce reliance on foreign-made drugs. Our nation's new tariff policies are focused on ending this structural weakness, he said in a statement released by the company. AstraZeneca said the investment could add tens of thousands of new jobs. The company employs around 18,000 people in the U.S. and 90,000 globally. The pledge builds on $3.5 billion in investments announced last year and comes as the company evaluates a possible shift in its stock listing from London to New York. This article first appeared on GuruFocus.
Daily Mail
5 hours ago
- Business
- Daily Mail
AstraZeneca set to invest £37bn in US: Move fuels fears firm with ditch UK listing
AstraZeneca has outlined plans to invest £37billion in the US as Donald Trump's pharmaceutical tariffs loom – fuelling fears that it will ditch its London listing. The FTSE 100 drug maker announced yesterday that it is accelerating its expansion in America with an investment that will create tens of thousands of new jobs. Analysts said 'the Government will be kicking itself' over the company's decision to plough money into the US rather than the UK – and added bosses are 'losing patience' with Labour. The move intensified concerns that AstraZeneca will shift its primary stock market listing from London to New York – a move that would strike a hammer blow to the City. Trump has threatened the sector with new import levies to pressure drug makers to move factories to the US. The President warned last week that he would impose tariffs 'probably at the end of the month' – and has previously said they could be as high as 200 per cent. The US is Cambridge-based AstraZeneca's largest market, accounting for 42 per cent of sales – a figure boss Pascal Soriot wants to boost to 50 per cent by the end of the decade. Russ Mould, investment director at AJ Bell, said: 'The more business it does in the country, the greater the likelihood that investors might push for AstraZeneca to switch its main stock listing to the US. 'That would be bad for the UK stock market as it is one of the biggest names in the FTSE 100.' AstraZeneca's pledge to invest in the US comes as an embarrassing snub to the Government just days after ministers unveiled a long-awaited plan to boost the UK's life sciences sector. Relations between AstraZeneca and the Government have become more strained since Labour came to power last year. In January, the firm axed plans for a £450million vaccine factory near Liverpool amid a funding row with ministers. And while Soriot has slammed the UK as 'a very unattractive place to do business', he yesterday said the push into the US 'underpins our belief in America's innovation in biopharmaceuticals and our commitment to the millions of patients who need our medicines in America and globally'. Rival manufacturers have also ramped up spending in the US as fears over tariffs swirl, including Swiss giant Roche, French firm Sanofi and FTSE 100 business Hikma. AJ Bell's Mould said: 'The Government will be kicking itself that AstraZeneca has decided to invest in the US as Blighty will miss out on associated economic benefits.' £1.2bn Sanofi swoop A French pharmaceuticals giant has agreed to buy a privately owned British biotech firm for up to £1.2billion. The deal sees Sanofi take control of Vicebio's early-stage combination vaccine candidate for respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) and human metapneumovirus (hMPV). Vicebio's vaccine candidate complements Sanofi's existing range, and allows it to offer a wider range to doctors and patients. Emmanuel Heron, Vicebio's boss, said Sanofi's 'global scale and deep expertise in vaccine development provide the ideal environment to fully realize the potential of our innovative technology. 'We look forward to advancing our platform.'
Reuters
7 hours ago
- Business
- Reuters
Danaher lifts annual profit forecast on pharma demand, China recovery
July 22 (Reuters) - Life sciences firm Danaher (DHR.N), opens new tab raised its annual profit forecast on Tuesday, banking on steady demand for bioprocessing from its pharmaceutical clients and a recovery in China. Danaher, which provides tools and technologies that help pharmaceutical companies develop and make drugs, said demand from the industry remains strong, with robust number of clinical trials and therapies under development. CEO Rainer Blair said that patents expiring soon for several high-volume therapies is also driving demand. Danaher expects high single-digit long-term growth for its bioprocessing unit. "Monoclonal antibodies, which comprise more than 75% of our bioprocessing revenues remain the largest investment area for our customers," Blair said. Revenues in China, about 12% of total sales, remained pressured due to Chinese government policies such as volume-based procurement and reimbursement changes. But the company said its China business, barring diagnostics, is improving, as government stimulus boosts pharma and biotech industries. Danaher's current exposure to proposed tariffs stands at "a couple hundred million dollars," down from previous estimates, a company executive told analysts on a call. Still, Danaher flagged that demand from academic and government sectors remained soft due to uncertainty around research funding, while clinical diagnostics and applied markets stayed stable. Evercore analyst Vijay Kumar said Danaher has delivered a "steady print" of results, and that improving trends in China and a potential bioprocessing recovery in 2026 could boost growth. The company now forecasts annual adjusted profit per share of $7.70 to $7.80, up from its previous projection of $7.60 to $7.75. Danaher expects third-quarter revenue to rise at a low-single-digit rate from a year earlier. Second-quarter sales came in at $5.94 billion, surpassing analysts' estimates of $5.84 billion, according to data compiled by LSEG. Separately, Danaher announced that Matthew Gugino will be succeeding long-time CFO Matthew McGrew, effective February 28, 2026.
Globe and Mail
8 hours ago
- Business
- Globe and Mail
ALKS Down Despite Positive Top-Line Data From Narcolepsy Study
Alkermes ALKS announced positive top-line data from the phase II Vibrance-1 study, which evaluated its novel, investigational, and oral orexin 2 receptor agonist, alixorexton (formerly ALKS 2680), for treating patients with narcolepsy type 1 (NT1). In the Vibrance-1 study, patients were randomized to receive alixorexton (4 mg, 6 mg or 8 mg) or placebo to be taken once daily for six weeks. Data from the study showed that treatment with alixorexton across all doses led to a statistically significant, clinically meaningful and dose-dependent improvement from baseline versus placebo in wakefulness on the Maintenance of Wakefulness Test (MWT) — the study's primary endpoint. Treatment with alixorexton across all doses demonstrated statistically significant and clinically meaningful improvements from baseline in excessive daytime sleepiness versus placebo at week six on the Epworth Sleepiness Scale — a key secondary endpoint of the Vibrance-1 study. Although all three doses of alixorexton led to improvements in weekly cataplexy rates — also a key secondary endpoint of the study — only the 6 mg dose achieved statistical significance. This might have hurt investor sentiment and caused the stock to decline 8.8% yesterday. Also, treatment with once-daily alixorexton led to robust and clinically meaningful improvements in patient-reported outcomes for excessive daytime sleepiness, fatigue and cognition compared to placebo. Treatment with alixorexton across all doses was generally safe and well-tolerated. ALKS' Price Performance Shares of Alkermes have declined 7.3% so far this year compared with the industry 's decrease of 2.2%. Building on the overall success of the Vibrance-1 study, management is planning to initiate a global phase III program for alixorexton in patients with NT1. NT1 is a chronic sleep disorder causing excessive daytime sleepiness and sudden muscle weakness called cataplexy due to orexin deficiency. We note that orexin agonists like alixorexton directly target the brain's orexin system — the root cause of NT1. Unlike other available drugs that only fight sleepiness, orexin agonists may also prevent cataplexy, offering a more natural and complete treatment approach. This can make them a promising and transformative treatment in narcolepsy care. The detailed safety and efficacy data from the phase II Vibrance-1 study are expected to be presented at an upcoming scientific conference. ALKS' Other Development Activities With Alixorexton Besides NT1, alixorexton is also being studied for the treatment of narcolepsy type 2 ('NT2') and idiopathic hypersomnia ('IH'). The phase II Vibrance-2 study is evaluating the safety and efficacy of alixorexton versus placebo in adults with NT2. Enrollment in this study is expected to be completed shortly, with data from the same expected during fall. In April 2025, the company initiated the phase II Vibrance-3 study, evaluating the safety and efficacy of alixorexton in adults with idiopathic hypersomnia, a rare, chronic and neurological sleep disorder. Per management, if successfully developed and upon potential approval, alixorexton can serve an area of high unmet medical need in the treatment of NT1 and NT2 as well as IH. However, upon potential approval, alixorexton is likely to face competition from Axsome 's AXSM Sunosi (solriamfetol), which is presently marketed in the United States for the treatment of narcolepsy. Several label expansion studies on solriamfetol are also currently underway. Axsome acquired the U.S. rights for Sunosi from Jazz Pharmaceuticals JAZZ in May 2022. AXSM began selling Sunosi in the U.S. market in May 2022. JAZZ received approval for Sunosi as a treatment for narcolepsy in 2019. Jazz's other sleep disorder drugs, Xyrem and Xywav, also hold a strong market share. ALKS' Zacks Rank & Stock to Consider Alkermes currently carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). A better-ranked stock in the biotech sector is Arvinas ARVN, sporting a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy) at present. You can see the complete list of today's Zacks #1 Rank stocks here. In the past 60 days, estimates for Arvinas' 2025 loss per share have narrowed from $1.60 to $1.51. Loss per share estimates for 2026 have narrowed from $3.28 to $2.98 during the same period. ARVN stock has plunged 60.7% year to date. Arvinas' earnings beat estimates in each of the trailing four quarters, delivering an average surprise of 82.09%. Zacks' Research Chief Names "Stock Most Likely to Double" Our team of experts has just released the 5 stocks with the greatest probability of gaining +100% or more in the coming months. Of those 5, Director of Research Sheraz Mian highlights the one stock set to climb highest. This top pick is a little-known satellite-based communications firm. Space is projected to become a trillion dollar industry, and this company's customer base is growing fast. Analysts have forecasted a major revenue breakout in 2025. Of course, all our elite picks aren't winners but this one could far surpass earlier Zacks' Stocks Set to Double like Hims & Hers Health, which shot up +209%. Free: See Our Top Stock And 4 Runners Up Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report Alkermes plc (ALKS): Free Stock Analysis Report Jazz Pharmaceuticals PLC (JAZZ): Free Stock Analysis Report Axsome Therapeutics, Inc. (AXSM): Free Stock Analysis Report Arvinas, Inc. (ARVN): Free Stock Analysis Report
Yahoo
9 hours ago
- Business
- Yahoo
AstraZeneca to invest $50 bn in the US as tariff threat looms
AstraZeneca's announcement included a new factory in the US state of Virginia, which will be the company's 'largest single manufacturing investment' (Jonathan NACKSTRAND) British pharmaceutical giant AstraZeneca said Tuesday it would invest $50 billion in the United States by 2030 amid US leader Donald Trump's threats to impose tariffs on the sector. The funds will boost its manufacturing and research operations in the US, including the construction of a multi-billion-dollar factory in Virginia, the company said in a statement. "Today's announcement underpins our belief in America's innovation in biopharmaceuticals," chief executive Pascal Soriot said. The US president has opened the door to potential tariffs targeting pharmaceuticals, which had up to now benefited from exemptions to his sweeping levies on imports from trading partners. He ordered an investigation into pharmaceutical imports, suggesting levies could reach up to 200 percent. The United States is a key market for the pharmaceutical industry, and AstraZeneca said it expects 50 percent of its revenue to come from the US by 2030. AstraZeneca has already begun transferring part of its European production to the United States, it announced in April. Trump on Tuesday thanked AstraZeneca, saying it was "an honour". The $50 billion is "a big investment, and it's going to be a very good investment, I have no doubt about it," Trump said. He added it would allow the company "to build various places all over the country, big manufacturing plants, pharmaceutical plants all over the country". While the drugmaker could become exposed to US levies on its European-made products, Soriot has said the impact would be limited due to the ongoing shift in production. - 'Losing patience' - Other major pharmaceutical companies, which had been exempt from tariffs for 30 years, have in recent months begun shifting investment and production to the United States. Swiss pharmaceutical giants Roche and Novartis and France's Sanofi have all announced multi-billion-dollar investments in the US. "For decades, Americans have been reliant on foreign supply of key pharmaceutical products," US Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick said in a statement. He added the new tariffs are focused on "ending this structural weakness". Tuesday's announcement included a new factory in Virginia, which will be the company's "largest single manufacturing investment". It adds to AstraZeneca's previously announced $3.5 billion investment in the US by 2026. "Soriot implied ... that AstraZeneca wasn't wedded to a particular country and that it would invest wherever it made financial sense," said AJ Bell investment director Russ Mould.
