To Take on Botox, Rival Tries Rebate
12.03.10
Allergan makes Botox Cosmetic , the well-known injectable anti-wrinkle treatment. Medicis markets Dysport , a competing anti-wrinkle shot, in the United States. The Food and Drug Administration has approved both drugs to smooth skin furrows between the eyebrows.
And now Medicis has introduced a new marketing campaign that pits Dysport directly against Botox , essentially issuing a Pepsi challenge for the wrinkle wars. The campaign is even called the Dysport challenge.
Medicis is offering more than rebates on its own product. For customers who feel unsatisfied after trying Dysport, the company is also offering a rebate on a treatment with Allergan’s Botox.
“We are so confident that we are literally willing to bet our money that patients will love their Dysport treatment,” said Jonah Shacknai, the chief executive of Medicis.
The Dysport campaign, which runs through April 30, is thought to be the first time a drug maker has offered a rebate on a competing drug. But it is hardly the first instance of pushing pharmaceuticals with a marketing zeal more typical of consumer products that do not carry a risk of medical side effects.
Source: New York Times
Medco's Snow: More Original Research to Aid Care, Cut Costs
23.02.10
By Anna Wilde Mathews
Pharmacy-benefit manager Medco Health Solutions reported earnings today, and the results didnt seem to surprise Wall Street too much even though its shares declined. But the company took some time on its call with analysts to highlight its growing push into original research.
Medco made a bit of a splash in 2008 when company researchers co-authored a study that suggested that heartburn drugs known as proton-pump inhibitors could interfere with the effectiveness of the anti-clotting medicine Plavix, which is co-marketed by Bristol-Myers Squibb and Sanofi-Aventis,
In todays call, CEO David B. Snow Jr. talked up Medco’s research efforts, noting that it had sponsored 12 studies published or presented last year and had pulled together its efforts in a new research institute. He argued that the company can improve outcomes and reduce costs with its work, according to a transcript of the call from Thomson Reuters. Among its research focuses are pharmacogenomics - efforts to use genetics to guide drug therapy - and comparative-effectiveness work.
Source: Wall Street Journal (blog)
Smooth Schering Integration in Merck's 4Q
16.02.10
Reported fourth-quarter results that largely met our expectations, and we don't expect any changes to our fair value estimate. The November closing of the Schering-Plough acquisition boosted Merck's top line. However, the increased interest expenses and higher share count because of debt and equity needed to fund the acquisition largely offset the top-line gains on a per share basis. So far, the merger appears on track to achieve the originally announced $3.5 billion in cost synergies by 2012. It also appears that the merger hasn't disrupted the growth trajectory of the majority of the company's key drugs.
Merck's drugs posted strong gains in the quarter. The company's top-selling drug Singulair for respiratory disease increased 12% year over year, which slightly exceeded our expectations. We believe the drug's neurological side effects raised about two years ago have been largely forgotten and we may slightly raise our projections for Singulair before its patent loss in 2012. Additionally, the company's cardiovascular drugs Zetia and Vytorin posted the first positive year-over-year growth since the ENHANCE study published in early 2008 questioned the drugs' efficacy. We believe the market overreacted to the study and growth should return for the drugs over the next few years. Further, we expect an interim look into the IMPROVE-IT study later in 2010 will shed some light on the efficacy of the drugs.
Source: Toronto Star
The company's top-selling drug Singulair for respiratory disease increased 12% year over year, which slightly exceeded our expectations.