IMNX
they have enbrel which is a huge seller for rheumatoid arthritis. recently expanded usage from late stage disease to early form. may expand use to patients with congestive heart failure.
they've got novatrone coming out, which will most likely be approved by the FDA for multiple sclerosis.
they're working on several cancer drugs and another one for asthma.
other products..
amicar is used for acutely bleeding patients.
leucovorin and methotrexate are given in combination for a variety of cancers.
methotrexate is also useful for psoriasis, rheumatoid arthritis, and a few other more uncommon diseases.
leukine is a granulocyte-macrophage colony stimulating factor which is a fancy term for a drug that stimulates bone marrow derived factors that are depressed by many chemotherapeutic agents.
PE 208 (YIKES!)
PS 32 (YIKES!)
Cash $750M
market cap 21B
recent news...
Wednesday, August 16, 2000
Little new from IMNX meeting
--2:38 pm - By Tomi Kilgore
Immunex (IMNX: news, msgs) is falling 6 7/16, or 14 percent, to 40 5/8. In the previous two trading sessions, the stock fell 3 13/16. Analyst Mark Augustine said a two-day (Monday-Tuesday) analyst meeting provided little stock-worthy news. He feels that the "daunting overhang" of a 70 million share offering from the company expected in the fall will "keep a lid" on the stock in the low 50s. He added that nothing new was added to last week's announcements regarding its relationship with American Home Products (AHP: news, msgs). Heather Morris of Janney Montgomery Scott said the meeting didn't reveal any "earth-shattering" news. She noted that the company highlighted its rheumatoid arthritis drug, Enbrel, as a driver for earnings near term.
ENBREL...their biggest drug so far..
Wednesday July 19, 6:32 pm Eastern Time
Morningstar.com
Valuation Is the Rub with Immunex
By Emily Hall
Immunex (Nasdaq: IMNX - news) is a biotechnology investor's dream, but it carries an awfully big price tag.
The biotech firm announced another quarter of solid earnings after the market closed Wednesday. Immunex reported earnings of $0.08 a share, a penny above consensus estimates.
Most important, the company reported that sales of rheumatoid arthritis drug Enbrel reached $155.1 million in the second quarter, up 18% from the first quarter and at the upper end of analysts' estimates for the current period.
Enbrel has quickly become one of the most important new biotechnology drugs on the market. It was originally approved to treat later-stage rheumatoid arthritis but recently received a label expansion to include early-stage patients, as well. Such an expansion significantly increases Enbrel's potential market and could drive continued growth in the product.
Moreover, Enbrel is in clinical trials for a number of other indications, including congestive heart failure--another very large potential patient base.
Optimism over Enbrel has led investors to bid up Immunex's shares to stratospheric levels. The stock is currently trading about 200 times its estimated earnings for 2000, easily making it one of the most expensive of the big biotech companies.
There's probably no reason for Immunex stockholders to sell their shares. But for those who are considering buying in, it makes sense to wait until the current round of biotech mania cools a bit, rather than purchasing shares when they're trading at such heady multiples.
Future product....
Antibody Therapy Collaboration Announced By Abgenix, Inc. and Immunex Corporation
FREMONT, Calif. and SEATTLE, July 26 /PRNewswire/ -- Abgenix, Inc. (Nasdaq: ABGX) and Immunex Corporation (Nasdaq: IMNX) reported today that they have entered into a joint development and commercialization agreement for ABX-EGF, a fully human antibody created by Abgenix and currently in a Phase I clinical trial involving several tumor types.
ABX-EGF targets the receptor for human epidermal growth factor (EGFr) which is overexpressed on some of the most prevalent human tumor types including lung, prostate, pancreatic, colorectal, renal cell and esophageal. It has been demonstrated that cancer cells can become dependent on growth signals mediated through the EGFr for their survival. ABX-EGF in mouse models can both eradicate established human tumors and block the growth of human tumors.
Immunex Licenses Prostate Cancer Antigens From UroCor for Research Against Prostate Cancer
SEATTLE and OKLAHOMA CITY, July 5 /PRNewswire/ -- In a move to develop monoclonal antibodies directed against prostate cancer, Immunex Corporation (Nasdaq: IMNX) has licensed rights to cancer-derived antigens from UroCor, Inc. (Nasdaq: UCOR).
"UroCor has identified and patented cell surface proteins that are potential targets for development of therapeutic monoclonal antibodies," said Doug Williams, Ph.D., executive vice president and chief technology officer at Immunex. "This licensing agreement allows us the opportunity to expand our research efforts in the fight against prostate cancer and to supplement our existing research programs to find novel, validated targets for antibody development."
UroCor has developed a proprietary library of genes expressed in neoplastic or pre-cancerous prostate cells.
NUVANCE(TM) (Soluble IL-4 Receptor) Development Program to Progress Based On Results of Phase II Clinical Trial in Patients with Asthma
181 Patient Study Shows Improved Lung Function as Measured by Daily FEV1, Dose Response, and that NUVANCE was Generally Well Tolerated
SEATTLE, May 25 /PRNewswire/ -- The product development program for NUVANCE(TM) (soluble IL-4 receptor) is progressing based on the results of the first phase II clinical trial of NUVANCE in patients with asthma, Immunex Corp. (Nasdaq: IMNX) announced today. NUVANCE is the first product of its kind to be evaluated in clinical trials.
"We are encouraged by our preliminary analysis showing that IL-4 modulation is a well-tolerated and promising investigational approach to controlling the asthma disease process," said Ann Hayes, MD, senior vice president, medical development. "Now, we are advancing the development program for NUVANCE according to our already established timeline to optimize inhibition of IL-4 with NUVANCE."
Immunex and Genentech Moving Forward With Preclinical Development Program Of TRAIL/Apo2L
SOUTH SAN FRANCISCO, Calif. and SEATTLE, May 1 /PRNewswire/ -- Immunex (Nasdaq: IMNX) and Genentech (NYSE: DNA) today reiterated the intention of the two companies to move forward in their collaborative preclinical study of TRAIL/Apo2L in cancer research.
Published experiments, including in vitro and in vivo preclinical models, demonstrates that the TRAIL/Apo2L molecule has the ability to kill a broad cross section of human tumor cell types without significantly affecting the survival of normal human cells (NATURE MEDICINE, Volume 5, Number 2, February 1999). Based on these results, the two companies moved forward in 1999 with a joint preclinical research collaboration involving TRAIL/Apo2L.
ENBREL(R) (etanercept) Follow-Up Study in Chronic Heart Failure Presented At American College of Cardiology Meeting
Report on First Patients to Receive Investigational Treatment for CHF on Sustained Basis
SEATTLE – Continued treatment with the TNF inhibitor ENBRELÒ (etanercept) was generally well-tolerated by the first twelve patients with advanced heart failure treated with the drug for nine months. In addition, there was evidence of sustained improvement in the New York Health Assessment (NYHA) class in these patients, according to results of a follow-up study presented today at the American College of Cardiology 49th Annual Scientific Sessions in Anaheim. ENBREL currently is under clinical development for chronic heart failure by Immunex (NASDAQ: IMNX) and Wyeth Ayerst, a division of American Home Products Corporation (NYSE: AHP).
In the other arm of the study, 31 patients (placebo = 10; etanercept = 21) discontinued their study drug and were followed for three months to evaluate what happened when treatment was stopped. Consistent with expected loss of drug effect, patients lost the improvement they had experienced while on treatment. Importantly, however, they experienced no rebound of their disease and did not get acutely worse from baseline.
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NOVANTRONE(R) One Step Closer to FDA Approval to Treat Multiple Forms Of Multiple Sclerosis
SEATTLE, March 2 /PRNewswire/ -- The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) issued an "approvable letter" to Immunex Corporation (Nasdaq: IMNX) today, indicating the agency's intention to support the use of NOVANTRONE(R) (mitoxantrone for injection concentrate) to treat multiple forms of multiple sclerosis (MS).
The "approvable letter" issued today follows a recommendation for approval made last month by the FDA's Peripheral and Central Nervous System Drugs Advisory Panel.
"The FDA's 'approvable letter' brings physicians and their patients with MS one step closer to gaining access to this new approach to treating worsening forms of this disease," said Dawn Viveash, vice president, regulatory affairs. "Our productive interaction with the FDA will continue, as we work with officials of the agency to expeditiously fulfill the requirements of the approval process. We expect the new NOVANTRONE labeling to be consistent with the FDA panel's recommendations for treatment indications and safety." |
