SNY's Dengue Vaccine Data Published

Sanofi’s (SNY - Analyst Report) vaccines division, Sanofi Pasteur, recently announced that, The Lancet, published data on the company’s dengue vaccine candidate. In the world’s first dengue efficacy trial, the dengue vaccine candidate demonstrated proof of efficacy.

The study enrolled 4,002 children aged between 4 and 11 years in Thailand. The dengue vaccine candidate was found to be effective against three of the four dengue serotypes. The vaccine demonstrated 61.2%, 81.9% and 90% efficacy against dengue virus type 1, type 3 and type 4, respectively. The dengue vaccine candidate demonstrated impressive safety profile.

Currently, large scale phase III studies with the dengue vaccine candidate are ongoing. These studies have enrolled a total of 31,000 children and adolescents in Latin America and Asia. The candidate enjoys fast track status from the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA).

According to World Health Organization (WHO), over 2.5 billion people at risk from dengue. However, currently there is no specific treatment available for this disease, indicating an unmet market need. Sanofi aims to tap this market with its dengue vaccine candidate.

Sanofi possesses one of the world’s leading vaccine operations, with total vaccines sales of €783 million in the second quarter of 2012. The company’s portfolio includes pediatric vaccines, influenza vaccines, adult and adolescent booster vaccines, meningitis vaccines and travel and endemic vaccines. Sanofi also has a strong position in both seasonal and pre-pandemic influenza vaccines.

Our Recommendation

We are pleased with the company’s efforts to develop its pipeline. We expect Sanofi to continue to contain operating costs in order to increase earnings in the face of weakening sales of some of its biggest products. We also expect the company to pursue bolt-on acquisitions.

We currently have a Neutral recommendation on Sanofi. The stock carries a Zacks #3 Rank (Hold rating) in the short run.