For the first time this year, BioWorld’s Biopharmaceutical Index is showing signs of life with an increase of 5.6%, boosted primarily by Alzheimer’s disease efforts from Biogen Inc. and Eli Lilly and Co. Biogen’s stock (NASDAQ:BIIB) is up about 36.4% this year and has been front and center due to its controversial FDA approval for Aduhelm (aducanumab) in June. Lilly’s stock (NYSE:LLY) has climbed by more than 44%, and it was granted breakthrough therapy designation a month ago for its Alzheimer’s candidate donanemab.
While 2020 was clearly a busier year for grants and nonprofit deals with biopharma companies, pandemic efforts continue to drive the activity in these two areas. Through mid-July, there have been 204 grants valued at $1.75 billion, and 516 bio/nonprofit deals worth more than $8 billion, up from $4.66 billion only a month ago.
Stock market exuberance, particularly in favor of an innovative industry working to pull the world out of the deadly COVID-19 pandemic, led to drug developers shares surging 30% in 2020. But if one thing is certain, it is this: Markets usually pull back and that is partially why BioWorld’s Drug Developers Index is showing only a 2.06% gain so far this year, in contrast to both the Nasdaq Biotechnology Index and the Dow Jones Industrial Average, which are up 6.28% and 10.96%, respectively.
RSS
