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Biotech / Medical : Biogen -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Vector1 who wrote (843)	1/13/1999 5:51:00 AM
From: Mike McFarland	Respond to of 1686

Mike grabs his clusters of differentiation notes, forgetting what antiCD40 ligand is all about for a moment...then checks the bgen stock price, eeek! Tripled in the last year huh--and the street loves that momentum! This post is kind of in regards to Avonex, and anti-CD40 prospects, and includes a link to a pick of mine...shameless. Okay Avonex...CBS Marketwatch calls Biogen a one trick pony... cbs.marketwatch.com but that's not fair Ah yes...If the Anti-CD40 MAB is successful in trials then in 5 years Biogen will have a bigger market cap than AMGEN The big guys just get bigger...you know, I had biogen options once, back in 1997, after they expired worthless I did not have the sense to buy the stock outright, gosh...I suck. But I am not going to give up! Biogen owners can stop reading at this point, I should stick to my own thread forgodsake... Right now there are no agents available to stimulate myelin regeneration in humans. There are provocative research reports on the use of progesterone to stimulate regeneration of myelin outside the brain and spinal cord; this study was performed in mice. Insulin-derived Growth Factor (IGF) and Glial Growth Factor (GGF) are two molecules that appear to promote some regrowth of myelin in the central nervous system (brain and spinal cord). Over the next few years, we can look forward to Phase 1 studies of these two agents in humans with demyelinating disease. aspin.asu.edu ...and finally my query on Ricks thread regarding GGF2 (note, the first page is more cd40 stuff, medi/btrn but page down to my trial balloon on Cambridge NeuroScience) Message 7254663 Thank you for the chance to post and vent, I will go away now. --Mike

To: Vector1 who wrote (843)	1/13/1999 8:36:00 AM
From: Harold Engstrom	Respond to of 1686

V1, thanks for the great report. Ironically, a press release today described Biogen as essentially a one-drug wonder with little in the pipeline... Did anyone mention when Phase II results for Antova would be presented? Also, shouldn't Phase III for Amevive commence this year? Did they say? Thanks again, Harold

To: Vector1 who wrote (843)	1/13/1999 9:07:00 AM
From: William Partmann	Respond to of 1686

V1 was there any indication about earnings. In other words, the media has reported that the company will meet projected earnings, did Vincent preclude higher than expected earnings this quarter? Thanks, enjoyed your reports.

To: Vector1 who wrote (843)	1/13/1999 3:19:00 PM
From: Beltropolis Boy	Respond to of 1686

v1. thanks so much for your synopsis of BGEN's presentation at the H&Q conference. believe you me, it's tremendously appreciated. there's nothing incredibly noteworthy here, but fwiw, BGEN is online investor's featured stock today: Stock of the Day Jan 13, 1999 Biogen: Soars on Upbeat Presentation Biogen (Nasdaq:BGEN - news) surged 7 points on Tuesday after making a bullish presentation at the Hambrecht & Quist's Healthcare Conference. This leading biotech company said fourth quarter sales of its top-selling MS drug, Avonex, totaled $120 million. Comments from Biogen's CEO suggested Avonex is achieving rapid penetration of the European market, reaffirming their expectations for a strong year ahead. We profiled Biogen just over a year ago in a Company Spotlight entitled "Taking Some of the Guess Work Out of Biotech Investing." Who could have guessed the stock would soar more than $54 to $89 currently. Our title referred to how hard it is for investors to evaluate biotech stocks since most don't have sales and earnings yet, and with Biogen at least you had these metrics by which to measure it. As it turns out, Biogen has delivered impressively on these numbers, hence the dramatic rise in the stock. According to Biogen's presentation on Tuesday, the company earned $0.54 per share in the fourth quarter and $1.80 for the year. That compares to $1.17 in 1997, a 54% increase. These profit figures were right in line with the analyst consensus. The number of MS patients using Avonex rose to 55,000 in 1998 from 35,000 a year earlier. The company's bullish comments on the future such as "We can now see that 100,000 patients on Avonex worldwide should be an achievable goal over the next several years," may encourage some analysts to bump up future estimates. The consensus for 1999 currently stands at $2.47. Biogen's Avonex received FDA approval in mid-1996 as a treatment for multiple sclerosis. This product marked a shift in strategy for Biogen to marketing the drugs they develop, instead of simply licensing them to a big pharmaceutical company and collecting royalties. Biogen still collects substantial licensing revenues from products it developed in the past such as alpha interferon drugs used to treat hepatitis. A strong outlook on Avonex sales for several years to come is critical in keeping investors comfortable, since Biogen's next major product launch is still two or three years away. The company is studying several other uses for Avonex, and it has three new drugs in Phase II clinical trials right now. Amevive is a T-cell inhibiting protein intended to treat psoriasis and other inflammatory conditions. Biogen is conducting trials with Antova to treat lupus and other autoimmune disorders. Last but not least, Adentri is being studied as a treatment of edema associated with congestive heart failure. fnews.yahoo.com

To: Vector1 who wrote (843)	1/14/1999 1:10:00 AM
From: Beltropolis Boy	Respond to of 1686

Johnson & Johnson's MS Drug Panel Hearing Canceled Bloomberg News January 13, 1999, 1:37 p.m. PT Washington, Jan. 13 (Bloomberg) -- Johnson & Johnson, the world's fifth-biggest drugmaker, won't push for a recommendation of its multiple sclerosis drug by a government panel on Jan. 29, as it was scheduled to do. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration confirmed that the advisory panel meeting has been canceled, though neither agency nor company officials were available to explain why. The next tentatively scheduled meeting for the advisory panel in charge of such drugs is in late April, according to the FDA's hotline. It's unusual for the FDA to schedule an advisory committee meeting and then cancel it. Reasons can range from timing conflicts to an agency decision that it doesn't need the advice of experts because it's already decided for or against a drug. ''My suspicion is that it's bad'' that the hearing was canceled, said Ira Loss, an analyst with HSBC Washington Analysis who covers the FDA. ''It's just the latest in what seems to be a consecutive strike-out string here.'' Good News Needed In the last two years, Johnson & Johnson has faced a series of drug setbacks at the FDA and the loss of a near-monopoly on a profitable heart device known as a stent. Last month, it announced it would cut 4,100 jobs and close 36 plants amid sluggish sales growth. ''They are going through a very rough period,'' said Sergio Traversa, an analyst with Mehta Partners. A drug approval would ''be good for the image and the morale. They need something good happening,'' he said. Shares of the New Brunswick, New Jersey-based company fell 1 1/8 to 78 11/16. Still, analysts aren't expecting big sales from the drug, known as cladribine, even if it does win approval for MS. The drug is currently approved to treat a form of leukemia and has side effects similar to anti-cancer drugs that would make it a second-tier option for MS, Traversa said. ''The potential for this kind of drug is really limited,'' said Traversa, who has a ''neutral'' rating on the company. The $1 billion MS market is currently dominated by Biogen Inc. and Schering AG. Biogen, one of the world's largest biotechnology companies, said yesterday that fourth-quarter sales of its Avonex drug for MS exceeded $120 million. $150 Million Sales Traversa predicted Johnson & Johnson's entry would have peak annual sales of about $150 million and would probably be used by patients who aren't helped by the Biogen or Schering drugs. Ares-Serono SA also sells a MS treatment known as Rebif outside the U.S., and Israel's Teva Pharmaceuticals Ltd. has FDA approval to sell its Copaxone MS treatment in the U.S. The disease destroys the insulation that protects and transmits impulses around nerve fibers in the spinal cord, brain and optic nerves, so that nerve impulses to and from the brain are distorted and interrupted. Scientists are stymied about what causes the disease, which often strikes people in their 20s or 30s and is found most frequently among women in colder climates. There is no cure.