Vivus Inc. (VVUS) announced Wednesday morning that it's terminating an agreement with FemPharm to develop an experimental testosterone treatment for women. As a result, the rights for the product, Luramist, will be returned to FemPharm, and Vivus will refocus its efforts on two other drugs in the pipeline: Qnexa for obesity and avanafil for erectile dysfunction.

"The decision to terminate the agreement was made in view of the significant long-term safety requirements for the approval of testosterone products in women," explained company president Peter Tam. "We believe it is in our shareholders' best interests to pursue other therapeutic candidates."

Continue reading VIVUS Calls It Quits on Testosterone Drug

VIVUS Calls It Quits on Testosterone Drug originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 31 Mar 2010 12:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Bernie Madoff is getting used to his new neighbors. Gone are the days of Montauk and Manhattan, and he isn't sharing his space with topless dancers.

Now, he says goodnight to a drug pusher, chills with a former mobster, and hangs with a convicted spy ... and these guys are probably saying, "I hang around with Bernie Madoff." The former financier Ponzi schemer spends his evenings walking laps around the prison track at the Butner Federal Correctional Complex, not far from Raleigh, N.C.

Continue reading Madoff: Chillin' with mobsters and spies

Madoff: Chillin' with mobsters and spies originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Thu, 22 Oct 2009 12:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Continue reading Purdue Pharma fights OxyContin abuse

Purdue Pharma fights OxyContin abuse originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Tue, 22 Sep 2009 15:20:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Continue reading Sanofi-Aventis (SNY) plunges on Plavix threat in Europe

Sanofi-Aventis (SNY) plunges on Plavix threat in Europe originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Fri, 09 May 2008 13:12:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Continue reading Gilead Sciences (GILD) reports higher Q1 profit but outlook disappoints

Gilead Sciences (GILD) reports higher Q1 profit but outlook disappoints originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Thu, 17 Apr 2008 12:25:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Continue reading Pfizer (PFE) reports disappointing Q1 earnings on weak drug sales

Pfizer (PFE) reports disappointing Q1 earnings on weak drug sales originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Thu, 17 Apr 2008 09:25:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

For the quarter, Abbott Laboratories reported that its profit climbed to $938 million, or 60 cents per share, boosted by higher sales of its prescription drugs and medical devices that benefited from favorable foreign exchange rates. Excluding special items, the company's earnings came in at 63 cents a share, beating analysts' estimations for quarterly earnings of 62 cents a share.

The pharmaceutical company also announced a 14% growth in revenues, to $6.77 billion, up from $5.95 billion a year earlier. Revenue during the period was helped by a 54% increase in its drug Humira sales which surged to $878 million in the first quarter. Analysts, on average, were expecting the company show $6.53 billion in revenue, according to Thomson Financial.

Continue reading Abbott Laboratories (ABT) posts 35% growth in quarterly profit

Abbott Laboratories (ABT) posts 35% growth in quarterly profit originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 16 Apr 2008 12:25:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Continue reading Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) reports surprising earnings

Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) reports surprising earnings originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Tue, 15 Apr 2008 13:20:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

After hitting a one-year high of $59.17 in January, the stock hit a one-year low of $46.64 last week. NVS opened this morning at $50.21. So far today the stock has hit a low of $49.70 and a high of $50.44. As of 11:55, NVS is trading at $50.19, up $1.19 (2.4%). The chart for NVS looks bearish and steady, while S&P gives the stock a neutral 3 STARS (out of 5) hold rating.

For a bullish hedged play on this stock, I would consider a May bull-put credit spread below the $45 range. A bull-put credit spread is an options position that combines the purchase and sale of put options to hedge risk in case the stock doesn't do what you think but still leverage nice returns. For this particular trade, we will make a 6.4% return in just 2 months as long as NVS is above $45 at May expiration. Novartis would have to fall by more than 10% before we would start to lose money.

Continue reading Novartis (NVS) gets Diovan approval in Canada

Novartis (NVS) gets Diovan approval in Canada originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Tue, 25 Mar 2008 14:14:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Continue reading Biogen (BIIB) fourth-quarter profit surges 84%

Biogen (BIIB) fourth-quarter profit surges 84% originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 06 Feb 2008 10:52:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

• Sysco Corporation (NYSE: SYY) to report Q4 earnings; conference call at 9:45am.
• PDUFA date for Indevus Pharmaceuticals Inc's (NASDAQ: IDEV) Sanctura XR, an overactive bladder drug.

• The Home Depot Inc (NYSE: HD) to report Q2 earnings; conference call at 9am. Home Depot is expected to post substantial Q2 revenue/EPS declines, but equally important will be the company's comments: with the housing sector expected to remain sluggish through at least late 2007, analysts will evaluate whether HD can overcome that headwind with a new focus on customer service, demographic trends that suggest increased home repair/remodeling, and 20-year high homeownership rates that suggest steady house goods demand.
• District Court California: Broadcom Corporation (NASDAQ: BRCM) to request an injunction related to Qualcom Incorporated's (Nasdaq: QCOM) infringement of 3 Broadcom cellular baseband patents.

• Macy's Inc (NYSE: M) to report Q2 earnings; conference call at 10:30am.
• PDUFA date for GPC Biotech's (NASDAQ: GPCB) Satraplatin for treatment of hormone refractory prostate cancer.

• JC Penney Co Inc (NYSE: JCP) to report Q2 earnings; conference call at 9:30am.
• Hewlett Packard Company (NYSE: HPQ) to report Q3 earnings; conference call at 5pm. Analysts will evaluate HPQ's ability to maintain momentum in its innovative imaging/printing group, which is expected to help HPQ post solid Q3 revenue gains.

• Quantum Corporation (NYSE: QTM) to hold annual shareholder meeting at 12pm.
• PDUFA Date for Endo Pharmaceuticals Holdings Inc's (NASDAQ: ENDP) and Vernalis PLC's (OTC: VNLSY) Frova, for menstrually-related migraine headaches.

Market highlights for next week: Home Depot (HD), Macy's (M) to report originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Fri, 10 Aug 2007 16:15:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

New obesity drug the real deal? originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 09 May 2007 14:25:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

No doubt by now you have heard the good news regarding Pfizer Inc. (NYSE:PFE) and the shield it has in place for Celebrex. You can get some more insight on that by reading Douglas McIntyre's post.

Now the time is ripe for Pfizer to do something powerful. If it can accomplish one or two block buster product releases before mid-year, it'll be off to the races once again. In pursuit of that goal, Pfizer has a large stable of potential ground shakers in development. Here's an encapsulated view of what Pfizer has going right now in R&D:

I counted 49 formulations that Pfizer has in PHASE I of development. Of those compounds, ten are intended cancer treatments, eight are for inflammation and / or pain, including arthritis, 11 are directed towards cardiology, metabolic and endocrine conditions. Pfizer also has six compounds in PHASE I that are indicated for infectious diseases. Phase one drug testing focuses on compound safety rather than drug effectiveness.

Continue reading Pfizer is up off the mat -- now is the time to move

Pfizer is up off the mat -- now is the time to move originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Thu, 22 Mar 2007 10:34:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

There's a very interesting feature over at The Motley Fool and I find it very useful . The CAPS community stock rating pages give highly understandable insight plus gems of investor feedback which help to bring the knowledge about individual stocks to a layman's level. Investment players like me benefit from this feature.

La Jolla Pharmaceutical Company (NASDAQ:LJPC) has the CAPS number one spot this weekend based on a 43.1% stock value spike fueled by moderately positive interim results in a phase III study of its number one product Riquent. The drug in question shows promise in the treatment of Lupus, a chronic inflammatory disease that can cause organ malfunction. However, analysts are skeptical regarding the value of this phase III test result as a basis for developing a strong position in the company.

Even those investors who express a positive mood, unwittingly show reservations about whether or not the LJPC spike can be supported. Analyst consensus is "hold" on LJPC stock and neutral on the company. It is worthy of note that an Associated Press news release regarding the LJPC test results states: "Several drug makers are in advanced stage trials for lupus drugs. To date, no specific lupus drug has been approved in the United States."(emphasis mine)

I myself expect LJPC share value to recede quickly and I would base my choices on that belief. I see nothing else of interest in the company's fundamentals... at least not to the positive side. If I had shares of JLPC which I purchased at bargain, I'd be tempted to unload half of them immediately to reap some of the current gain. If I had bought those shares for a higher price, I'd be comfortable holding on to them for a while just to see what develops.

La Jolla Pharma: What are the Fools saying? originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Mon, 12 Mar 2007 14:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Not a day after Wal-Mart Stores' (NYSE:WMT) announcement it is cutting generic drug prices to $4 in Florida, Target Corp (NYSE:TGT) said it would immediately match these lower prices. Seems Target wants to offer everyday low prices too.

If pharmacy chains thought they were in trouble after Wal-Mart's announcement, their troubles have just doubled. As for Wal-Mart, its competitive edge had just been diluted.

The 300 drugs Wal-Mart had mentioned consist of commonly-prescribed ones, and will be offered for as little as $4 a month. Sixty-five Wal-Mart, Neighborhood Market and Sam's Club stores in the Tampa Bay area are supposed to start the program today. The program will be expanded to all of Florida by January and nationwide by next year.

Target didn't say if it would also expand its offer to match Wal-Mart, but if we read the statement it issued correctly, then Target will always be price-competitive with Wal-Mart.

While Wal-Mart's motives could be related to attempts to improve its embattled public image, Target's motives are clear, and neither are altruistic. But as long as the customers can benefit -- even if Wal-Mart and Target's customers come from different demographics -- the motives aren't that important, or are they?

Perhaps coming from Canada, where a system of public health-care exists, I can't properly relate to all this. I grind my teeth when I hear of big corporations trying to take advantage of poor health-care services while increasing their own profits.

Target matches Wal-Mart's generic drug price cut originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Fri, 22 Sep 2006 12:54:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.