Biogen (BIIB) Says Crelizumab Program in RA Suspended
Analysts at UBS reiterate their “neutral” rating on Biogen Idec Inc (Nasdaq: BIIB).
The research note by UBS says that, following a recommendation from a data safety monitoring board, BIIB and its partner Roche have decided to “suspend their ocrelizumab (2nd-generation anti-CD20) program in RA due to an increased risk of serious and opportunistic infections.” Ocrelizumab will still be evaluated in a phase 2 trial in relapsing/remitting multiple sclerosis.
“We note that while anti-CD20 royalties for Biogen will continue to decline, the company’s profit split with Roche should remain stable until a next generation anti-CD20 receives regulatory approval. With today’s setback, we believe a decline in Biogen’s anti-CD20 profit split has been delayed until 2012 at the earliest,” the analysts say. “To better determine the impact of this setback on the anti-CD20 profit share between Biogen and Roche, we place our estimates and price target under review,” the analysts add.
