Biogen Inc (NASDAQ: BIIB) stock rose over 4.1% on July 24th, 2018 (Source: Google finance) after the company reported better-than-expected second quarter profit driven by strong demand of its Spinraza muscle disease treatment, and the company raised its full-year 2018 profit forecast. Spinraza sales has more than doubled to $423 million, and has comfortably exceeded analysts’ estimates of $393.8 million, according to Thomson Reuters data. Biogen is working to add adult patients and expand international sales of Spinraza, which has a list price of $750,000 in the first year of treatment. Further, while sales of multiple sclerosis drugs had declined due to the intensifying competition, including a 2.2 percent drop for Tecfidera to $1.09 billion, they rebounded from a particularly weak first quarter.
Moreover, BIIB has expressed renewed confidence in its experimental Alzheimer’s disease programs. BIIB is making progress in its bid to find effective treatment for Alzheimer’s disease. The company has a pair of treatments in the pipeline, and reports indicate that progress is being made on both of them. Biogen and partner Eisai will present more details regarding their drug, called BAN2401, at the Alzheimer’s Association International Conference on July 25. As Piper Jaffray analyst Christopher Raymond, Biogen’s Alzheimer’s treatment needs to show only a 15% improvement over placebos to gain Food and Drug Administration approval. As per BIIB, the positive results for BAN2401 bodes well for its lead Alzheimer’s drug aducanumab, which also works by removing amyloid from the brain. The company said two aducanumab Phase III studies were fully enrolled. It also said the first patient had been dosed in a Phase II study of another Alzheimer’s drug with a different target called tau. Furthermore, BIIB has announced the purchase of two experimental drugs for neuromuscular diseases from AliveGen Inc for $27.5 million, and said it was still in the hunt for early and late-stage drugs to complement its existing portfolio.
BIIB in the second quarter of FY 18 has reported the adjusted earnings per share of $5.80, beating the analysts’ estimates for the adjusted earnings per share of $5.21. The company had reported the adjusted revenue growth of 9 percent to $3.4 billion in the second quarter of FY 18, beating the analysts’ estimates for revenue of $2.47 billion.
BIIB has raised its full-year 2018 adjusted profit forecast to $24.90 to $25.50 per share from $24.20 to $25.20. The company now expects 2018 revenue in the range of $13 billion to $13.2 billion, up from its prior view of $12.7 billion to $13.0 billion.