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Bristol Myers (BMY) Up 14.6% YTD: Will the Performance Continue?

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Shares of Bristol Myers (BMY - Free Report) have gained 14.6% in the year so far against the industry’s decline of 21.6%.

The performance of blood thinner drug Eliquis and immuno-oncology drug Opdivo, along with encouraging pipeline progress, has impressed investors.

Eliquis has delivered a stellar performance so far in 2022, propelled by increases in share in the novel oral anticoagulant market. It is the leading oral anticoagulant drug, and the company continues to experience growth in both the Eliquis brand and the market.

Label expansion of Opdivo boosted sales driven by higher demand across multiple indications, including the Opdivo+Yervoy-based combinations for non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC), Opdivo+Cabometyx combination for kidney cancer and Opdivo-based therapies for various gastric and esophageal cancers. Opdivo is one of the top revenue generators for BMY, and the continued label expansion of the drug for additional indications should further boost its growth potential.

 

 

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The FDA approved a new, first-in-class, fixed-dose combination of PD-1 inhibitor Opdivo (nivolumab) and relatlimab (novel LAG-3-blocking antibody) administered as a single intravenous infusion for the treatment of adult and pediatric patients 12 years of age or older with unresectable or metastatic melanoma (a kind of skin cancer) under the brand name Opdualag.  The initial uptake of the drug has been encouraging.

The approval of these new drugs and label expansion of existing drugs will add an incremental revenue stream, which should boost growth in the coming quarters. Camzyos (mavacamten, 2.5 mg, 5 mg, 10 mg, 15 mg capsules) has been approved in the United States for the treatment of adults with symptomatic New York Heart Association (NYHA) class II-III obstructive hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (obstructive HCM) to improve functional capacity and symptoms.

The uptake of the new product portfolio (primarily cell therapy products and Reblozyl) has boosted sales. Bristol Myers is also developing deucravacitinib, its TYK2 inhibitor, to treat psoriasis and other immune-mediated diseases. The FDA has accepted the NDA and the EMA has validated the Marketing Authorization Application for deucravacitinib for treating adults with moderate to severe plaque psoriasis. The regulatory body has assigned a target action date of Sep 10, 2022. A potential approval will broaden the portfolio.

Bristol Myers recently acquired Turning Point Therapeutics for $4.1 billion. The acquisition added Turning Point’s lead asset, repotrectinib, a next-generation, potential best-in-class tyrosine kinase inhibitor (TKI) targeting the ROS1 and NTRK oncogenic drivers of NSCLC and other advanced solid tumors. The deal should strengthen Bristol Myers’ position in the oncology space, particularly in the lucrative lung cancer arena.

However, one of the top drugs Revlimid is facing generic competition, which in turn is adversely impacting the top line and will erode sales further.

Moreover, competition is stiff for Opdivo from the likes of Merck’s (MRK - Free Report) Keytruda. The drug, approved for various oncology indications, is the key driver for Merck.

Bristol Myers currently carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold).  A couple of better-ranked stocks in the sector are Bolt Pharmaceuticals (BOLT - Free Report) and Dynavax (DVAX - Free Report) .  Both carry a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.

Loss estimates for BOLT have narrowed to $2.25 from $2.87 in the past 60 days. BOLT surpassed earnings in three of the trailing four quarters, the average being 2.39%.

Dynavax’s earnings estimates have increased to $1.73 from $1.14 for 2022 over the past 60 days. Earnings of Dynavax have surpassed estimates in two of the trailing four quarters.




 

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