No rational person can fault the American people for being skeptical about the amount of wealth big pharma companies have gotten since the disastrous COVID 19 pandemic has destroyed so much opportunity and quality of life for average people.
The news that Pfizer is now eyeing a new medicine for a new illness- is scary to those average people who are just beginning to put their lives back together. But the Big Corp persists on making money and making money decisions- with what feels like our health.
The headline is that as fortunes are in question- Pfizer will buy a new medicine maker- with hopes of wealth.
Pfizer (PFE) will buy privately held RSV treatment-maker ReViral for up to $525 million, the company said early Thursday.
Pfizer stock rose.
The deal bolsters Pfizer’s pipeline targeting the respiratory syncytial virus, a pathogen that leads to lower respiratory tract infections in high-risk populations, particularly infants and the elderly. Several companies are in the queue with RSV vaccines, including Pfizer and Moderna (MRNA).
But ReViral is, instead, working on treatments for the infection. In most people, RSV can cause cold-like symptoms. But it can be deadly in vulnerable people. Pfizer estimates the virus leads to 160,000 deaths globally each year.
“We’re continuing to grow our pipeline — through our own research-and-development efforts, such as our investigational RSV vaccine programs, as well as strategic investments in companies like ReViral — with a focus on end-to-end capabilities to help protect patients from severe illness, hospitalization and death,” Pfizer Chief Executive Albert Bourla said in a written statement.
In yesterday’s stock market, Pfizer stock advanced 4.3% to $55.16 per share.
Pfizer believes ReViral’s programs could ultimately generate $1.5 billion in sales. Among those, the company is studying a drug called sisunatovir. ReViral found sisunatovir to be safe in infants. It also showed enough pharmacological promise to begin another midstage study.
“This acquisition represents a validation of the deep antiviral experience of the ReViral team and our unwavering commitment to deliver therapies for patients in need,” ReViral CEO Alex Sapir said in a written statement.
Pfizer’s $525 million bill includes upfront and development milestones.
Pfizer stock is consolidating with a buy point at $61.81 per share, according to MarketSmith.com.
The news comes a day after an FDA committee discussed Covid boosters at length and after a study out of Israel suggested a fourth dose of a messenger RNA vaccine against Covid could prove futile in the long run. Pfizer is now looking for its next leg of growth.
According to fierce biotech:
Pfizer has plenty of firepower for M&A thanks to the successful COVID-19 franchise, so the ReViral deal is a nice bolt-on that falls in line with executives’ pledge to be “thoughtful and disciplined about resource allocation.”
In December 2021, the company said it was looking for later-stage assets that can bring revenue in the back half of the decade and potential medical breakthroughs in earlier-stage development.
ReViral seems to bring both to the table with sisunatovir and the viral N protein program. CEO Albert Bourla, Ph.D., said ReViral fits into a strategy to provide “end-to-end capabilities” for patients.
It always sounds like they have our health and well being in mind, but after what the American people have been through the last two years, it is doubtful many people are celebrating this news- other than investors- who know the play.
Kari is an ex-Community Organizer who writes about Cultural Marxism, grassroots activism, music, IndyCar racing and political campaigns. @Saorsa1776
