Amgen Scraps Its Weight Loss Pill, Moves Forward With Injections

(CTN News) – In a statement on Thursday, Amgen said it will stop developing an experimental weight loss pill in favor of its injectable drug and other products in development to treat obesity.

According to some analysts, Amgen could lose $100 billion by the end of the decade in the competitive Weight Loss Pill market dominated by Novo Nordisk and Eli Lilly. Other opportunities exist for the company to gain market share.

We will not pursue further development of [the oral drug] given its profile. Amgen’s chief scientific officer, Jay Bradner, said during a Thursday earnings call that they are investing in MariTide and a number of preclinical assets in obesity.

There is an ongoing amidage trial of Amgen’s injectable obesity treatment MariTide in obese or overweight adults without diabetes. In addition to releasing initial data, the company is planning a late-stage trial with regulators. A stage two trial is also planned for Amgen’s diabetes drug. Additionally, Amgen is developing other weight management drugs.

During the past year, AMG-786, another weight loss pill from the company, has been discontinued.

Danuglipron, a Pfizer obesity pill, was discontinued in December after patients had difficulty tolerating the drug in a midstage trial. Currently, the company is developing a once-daily formulation of that medication.

Investors are keenly interested in Amgen’s Weight Loss Pill treatment pipeline. With a unique approach, Amgen hopes to stand out from competitors.

People can Weight Loss Pill differently with the company’s experimental injection than with existing injectable drugs. As with Novo Nordisk’s Wegovy and Eli Lilly’s Zepbound, Amgen’s treatment activates a gut hormone receptor called GLP-1 to regulate appetite.

Unlike Zepbound, Amgen’s drug blocks the GIP hormone receptor. GLP-1 suppresses appetite, but Wegovy may also help reduce sugar and fat absorption. Based on some clinical trial data, Amgen’s injectable treatment may also help patients maintain their weight once they stop taking it. As well as testing its drug once a month, the drugmaker hopes to make it even more convenient than the current weekly medicine.

In just 12 weeks, patients taking the highest dose of Amgen’s MariTide – 420 milligrams per month – lost 14.5% of their body weight on average, according to data published in Nature Metabolism in February.

First-quarter Amgen results Weight Loss Pill

LSEG surveyed analysts for Amgen’s first quarter report compared with what Wall Street expected:

• $3.96 versus $3.87 expected earnings per share

• Estimated revenue: $7.45 billion vs. $7.44 billion

During the quarter, Amgen lost $113 million, or 21 cents per share. In the prior year, the company earned $2.84 billion, or $5.28 per share.

Earnings per share were $3.96 after excluding certain items.  A year ago, Amgen booked $7.45 billion in revenue, an increase of 22%.  Tepezza, a treatment for thyroid eye disease, accounted for $914 million of that amount.

Amgen reports 6% growth in product sales excluding Horizon Therapeutics drugs. Repatha, a cardiovascular drug, Tezspire, a severe asthma treatment, and Blincyto, a blood cancer therapy, all had double-digit volume growth during the first quarter. On Thursday, Amgen also narrowed its full-year guidance.

As of 2024, revenue is expected to reach $32.5 billion. $32.4-$33.8 billion was the previous guidance. This year, it expects to earn $19-20 per share. The previous guidance was $18.90-20.30. LSEG expects $32.95 billion in revenue and $19.48 per share in adjusted profit.

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