Yahoo Finance Novartis Looks to Exit Antibacterial, Antiviral Program
As per a statement released by media sources, Novartis AG NVS is all set to exit its antibacterial and antiviral research program.
The Swiss pharma giant also plans to reduce the headcount at Emeryville, CA, campus of Novartis Institutes for BioMedical Research (NIBR) by about 140.
The company is reportedly in discussions to out-license its preclinical programs as well as antibiotic LYS228. The candidate is being evaluated for the treatment of complicated intra-abdominal infection (cIAI) and complicated urinary tract infection (cUTI) in phase II studies.
Per the company, it is in the process of prioritizing its resources in core areas.
The company, however, plans to retain 150 employees in the San Francisco Bay area across the Novartis Institute for Tropical Diseases (NITD) and other functions.
Novartis is not the only company to exit this space, which was once deemed promising. Allergan AGN too is reportedly looking to sell its infectious disease unit. Earlier, in 2016, AstraZeneca AZN sold its anti-infectives business, primarily outside the United States, to Pfizer PFE.
Novartis is looking to restructure its business, of late. We remind investors that earlier this month Novartis announced that it intends to spin-off its ophthalmology division, Alcon, into a separately-traded standalone company in order to grow as a medicines company solely.
The Alcon business wasn’t performing as per management’s expectations. Although it did revive in between, the company decided to spin-off the same in order to focus better on its legacy drug business.
Novartis has a strong oncology portfolio of drugs like Afinitor, Exjade, Jakavi, Zykadia, Tasigna, Jadenu and Kisqali, which continue to boost its sales. However, it is facing the loss of patent protection for some of the key drugs. Consequently, the company has restructured its business and plans to focus on building its portfolio in markets, which promise potential.
Novartis’ shares have declined 2.6% in the year so far compared with the industry’s gain of 1.2%.
Novartis is looking to solidify its presence in the gene therapy space. Earlier, it acquired U.S.-based clinical stage gene therapy company, AveXis, Inc.
Zacks Rank
Novartis carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold).
You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.
5 Medical Stocks to Buy Now
Zacks names 5 companies poised to ride a medical breakthrough that is targeting cures for leukemia, AIDS, muscular dystrophy, hemophilia and other conditions.
New products in this field are already generating substantial revenue and even more wondrous treatments are in the pipeline. Early investors could realize exceptional profits.
Click here to see the 5 stocks >>
Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report
AstraZeneca PLC (AZN) : Free Stock Analysis Report
Pfizer Inc. (PFE) : Free Stock Analysis Report
Allergan plc (AGN) : Free Stock Analysis Report
Novartis AG (NVS) : Free Stock Analysis Report
To read this article on Zacks.com click here.
Zacks Investment Research
