At one time the industry would congratulate itself if it managed to raise $20 billion in a single year. Now companies appear to have no difficulty capturing that amount over a three-month period whether the financial markets are favorable or not.
The first quarter of the year is not going to go down as the most memorable for blue chip public biopharmaceutical companies. March was particularly tough on them, despite a rally in the broader markets last Thursday ahead of the Easter holiday weekend.
Drug development is a risky business, not only for the companies trying to bring promising new medicines to the market, but also for investors who are hoping for significant returns when regulatory approval is achieved.
In a statement from FDA Commissioner Scott Gottlieb on advancing the development of novel treatments for neurological conditions, he noted the brain is the last organ system where many aspects of our understanding of the underlying biology of disease remain uncertain.
Biopharmaceutical companies had no difficulty attracting capital in 2017. In fact, they raised $52 billion – an amount that places the year solidly in second place in terms of annual totals generated by the industry.
Biopharmaceutical companies had no difficulty attracting capital in 2017. In fact, they raised $52 billion – an amount that places the year solidly in second place in terms of annual totals generated by the industry.
The biopharmaceutical sector got slammed in early February by an unexpected market correction when the Dow plummeted 1,175 points in a single day, the largest single points drop on record. The market did, however, get off the mat and recover some of its losses as the month rolled on, but it remained susceptible to any negative economic or financial news and often tumbled hundreds of points in a single day following such announcements.
The Dow plummeted a whopping 1,175 points last Monday, the largest single points drop on record, which played havoc with all sector equities. Although recovering back about half of the loss the following trading day, nervous investors were preparing for the worse - an extended turbulent period on the capital markets leading to a full correction of a significant 10 percent to 20 percent drop in the leading stock market indices.
The Dow plummeted a whopping 1,175 points last Monday, the largest single points drop on record, which played havoc with all sector equities. Although recovering back about half of the loss the following trading day, nervous investors were preparing for the worse - an extended turbulent period on the capital markets leading to a full correction of a significant 10 percent to 20 percent drop in the leading stock market indices.
The J.P. Morgan Healthcare Conference usually sets the agenda for the industry for the upcoming 12 months, but this year the delegates left the meeting perhaps wanting more action. The meeting was decidedly low key with the absence of any major news flow from companies during the week.
