The Celgene Story Is Bigger Than Revlimid Now; Argus Upgrades

Argus upgraded Celgene Corporation CELG Monday on the strength of a diversified drug portfolio and a “robust development pipeline” that’s expected to result in several drugs going under regulatory review later this year.

The biopharma company saw strong sales of its multiple myeloma drug Pomalyst and the psoriasis drug Otezla in the second quarter, reducing Celgene’s reliance on sales of the cancer drug Revlimid, analysts David Toung and Annie Petrino said in a note.

Argus upgraded Celgene from Hold to Buy and set a $160 price target.

On Thursday, Celgene reported a Q2 adjusted EPS of $1.82 against a $1.72 estimate and sales of $3.27 billion against a $3.23 billion estimate.

The company’s EPS guidance for 2017 was raised to a range of $7.25–$7.35, up from an earlier estimate of $7.15–$7.30.

Growing Pharmaceutical Sales

Argus downgraded Celgene in May, largely due to concerns about its dependence on Revlimid, Toung and Petrino said.

“We are encouraged by the strong Q2 sales of Pomalyst and Otezla, which are providing additional growth drivers,” the analysts said.

Pomalyst and Otezla are picking up market share and approval in overseas markets, according to Argus.

Revlimid was approved in February by the FDA as a maintenance therapy for multiple myeloma patients who have had autologous stem cell transplants, the research firm said.

The products in development at Celgene include “key” oncology and immunology products that are scheduled for regulatory review in the second half of 2017, the analysts said.

Related Links:

This Analyst Is Disappointed With Performance Of Celgene's Mongersen, Ozanimod

Has Celgene Become Vulnerable To 'Revenue Concentration Risk'?